Danganronpa: The Despair of Tomorrow
by Beninja2618
Summary: Monokuma is back and here to bring despair to America with an OC cast of sixteen American teens who're not prepared for what awaits them in the new Hope's Peak built in Los Angeles! Kai Brugger the Ultimate Actor, leaves his luxury life behind to fulfill his dream of making real friends but will he save any of them in the end? OC death, blood, language, sexual implications, & more!
1. Prologue: Good Morning Despairica!

**Danganronpa: The Despair of Tomorrow**

 _ **Prologue: Good Morning Despairica!**_

"And cut! Alright everyone, with that we are now done with the shooting process of our movie! Let's give a warm round of applause for our actors for the spectacular performance they have done!" Everyone clapped for them before the director looked towards me. "And let's give an especially big hand to our lead actor for helping this movie become what I know will be the ultimate blockbuster of the year!" The director shouted out as he, the staff, and the other actors applauded and cheered. I even heard most of them call me out with cat calls and whistles and I couldn't help it when I felt the heat rush to my cheeks. Even with nearly eleven years of acting and getting all this praise after every role I have ever done, I still get so flustered.

But that doesn't matter right now. I should know better than to go on a tangent without a proper introduction. Especially for an actor like myself.

My name is Kai Brugger and for as long as I can remember I have always loved acting; Whether it was in movies, TV shows, plays, or really anything that involved acting or voice acting. I began participating in the theatre when I turned six by joining the community's kid production of "High School Musical". I know it may have not been the best to start off with but it was the only thing I was allowed at the time.

Anyways I happened to get the role of Troy and the director found it surprising that I picked up on the role much faster than any child she worked with. I also happened to be working with the daughter of a CEO company who enlisted his daughter to participate as Sharpay.

Her father apparently saw one my scenes with his daughter during rehearsal and called up a buddy of his. The man he called then came to our show on our final night and was impressed with my performance. How do I know that? Well he approached me and Mother and asked if he could be my agent. At first, Mother wasn't for it but after he negotiated things with her, she allowed me to go with him.

Now almost eleven years later and I'm ranked as the number one child/teen actor of the decade! How crazy is that? I mean I have only done about 79 movies; both including normal acting and voice acting, made 27 TV show appearances, 31 roles as video game characters, English dubbed 23 anime characters, and even done 11 audio books for major authors and poets. Not to mention every time I got nominated for an Oscar I won that category which now left me with 17 Oscars. Okay maybe it's understandable why I got the title. Although it may not measure up to other adult and child actors but the reason people say I have this title is because of how easily I pick up on every role. They say I do exactly what the director wants and suddenly we finish production months in advance since I only need a one-time run through of my portion of the script, which is true but I don't like showing off.

I know it's impressive but I never would say I'm better than all the other child/teen actors. That was until I got approached after that final shoot by a man I never thought would want to see me.

He was pretty plain looking but the most interesting feature about him was that he wasn't American. In fact he was Japanese, which surprised me since my acting isn't really recognized outside of America. Or so I thought.

He was waiting outside the studio as he looked out upon the sea of actors, equipment staff, and cameramen to try and spot out his target; which he beamed when he saw the director thanking me one last time before we parted ways with me walking away from the man. He immediately rushed after me, waving one hand while the other hand clung a clipboard to his chest. "Excuse me Kai Brugger! I need to speak with you about," But before he got the chance to finish, my agent popped out of seemingly nowhere and tackled the poor man, pinning his head down and sitting atop of him. The man gasped out in pain as the clipboard dug painfully underneath his chest.

"Now unless you want to leave this place with your arms in splinters, then I suggest you make an appointment before rushing up to my client, got it?" He growled at the man.

Despite him manhandling an obviously harmless man, I couldn't help but lightly chuckle at him. Terry Bobinski was the 36 year old man who took me under his wing all those years ago and he's never left my side. Despite not being related, he has the same black hair I have except his is smoothed down and short while mine had more height and volume for the movie I shot. He had brown eyes but mine were very different. My eye coloring was hazel but they had a brighter yellow hue to them, making them look like two blazing suns were there on my head. His body was very muscular while mine was also built but more like an average swimmer than a pro wrestler and our skin color was similar in the fact we both were quite tanned.

He taught me everything I know today and he has helped me to climb the ladder to success, fame, fortune, and all that other obvious stuff. He's also appointed himself as my main bodyguard to help fight off paparazzi, fangirls (and guys), and even the others that I work with. Yes even other actors get kinda crazy when they see they're working with me on a movie or something. He's dedicated his entire existence to my well-being as he has said multiple times and honestly I could never thank him enough because trust me, I have tried.

I almost forgot he was crushing the poor Japanese man as I rushed over to him. "Come on, Terry. Stop hurting the man." I sighed as I eventually pulled him off of the man.

Terry grimaced as he dusted his suit off. "Must you always ruin my fun? I haven't gotten such a thrill like that since I pushed you out of the way of the lamppost in your last theatre rehearsal of Hamlet. The idiot stage hand had forgot to screw it to the set properly and I gave him a lesson in manners."

Again I couldn't help but chuckle. "You always have to be overdramatic about these things. Looks like you might be the new top child/teen actor of the decade."

"Keep that up and soon I will knock you down both figuratively and realistically." He smiled as he lunged at me but I smirked as I sidestepped him and wrapped the hand towel that hung around my neck across his face. His eyes widened as he got a nose and mouthful of my body's natural stench of sweat as he began clawing at the towel, desperate for release. "I think not." I whispered to him as I let go of the towel.

He quickly recovered as he gasped in the fresh, hot California air that plunged into his lungs. He then glared at me with the same playful smirk as I had on. "God, how do you always smell so bad after a performance?"

I simply shrugged at him until we heard a grunt from behind. Oh right, that man was still here as he slowly pushed himself off the ground. He looked queasy as he reached for his clipboard. Terry made a move again but I put my hand to his chest to stop him as the little man cringed in fear. Terry snorted at him as I shook my head and approached the man. "I apologize about Terry. But it is best if you arrange an appointment with him first so that kind of thing won't happen again."

He looked up nervously and then back down at his clipboard. "Yes but this is short notice for me just as much as it is for you. See I was sent here by request of Mr. Kirigiri."

Terry's eyes suddenly lit up as he approached us. "Wait a minute. Are you referring to Jin Kirigiri?"

The man smiled as he seemingly broke out of the protective shell he had on. "Y-Yes sir, the one and only."

I looked at Terry with confusion written plainly on my expression but he simply nodded to me, silently saying not to worry. He looked back at them man and motioned to him. "Come, let us take this to Kai's trailer. We'd be happy to discuss this further in private."

Honestly they both lost me at this point as those two quite literally skipped their way to my trailer. All I could do was feel my cheeks puff out in annoyance since they haven't said a word to me yet.

My trailer was about the size of a fifth-wheel with all the normal accommodations an actor's trailer would have. 52" flat screen, all the video games, movies, and TV shows on Blu-Ray that all starred me, big, velvet sheeted foam bed, a trophy case with all my Oscars and other various awards, and other similar items.

We sat the man down on the leather couch as I decided to sit on the stool in the kitchen area and down a ham and cheese club sandwich I had saved earlier.

Terry had his hands placed together in front of his mouth as he then lowered them and looked at the mysterious man. "So I can only assume you are here for one reason right?"

The man nodded. "You are correct Mr. Bobinski."

Terry again couldn't help but smile. "I knew it!"

I sighed again and looked to them. "Will someone please clue me in? What's so amazing right now that you're forgetting to include the person I highly believe you'll be talking about?" I took another chomp of the sandwich as the two looked to each other and nodded. 'Was this supposed to be an unspoken language that only they can understand?' I thought annoyed.

"Mr. Brugger, have you heard of the prestigious academy in Japan called Hope's Peak?" The man asked.

My face turned blue as I felt myself inhale a gasp of surprise and the sandwich into my air tube and coughed uncontrollably. Lettuce, onion, mayo, ham, cheese, and other ingredients went flying all over the plate and counter in front of me. As soon as I recovered I noticed Terry behind me, making sure he didn't have to perform the hemlock on me and the man looking intently at me too.

I blushed after making myself look like the Queen's fool and quickly looked over to the man. "You are talking about the academy that can guarantee successful futures for its graduates, right? Who hasn't heard of that school?"

"Well I am glad because the reason I ask is because I am a scout for the school and after learning about your history in the theatre, Mr. Kirigiri and I both think you should attend." The man told me.

I felt my heart skip a beat when I heard that. "Really? You want me?"

"Of course," He then began thumbing through the papers on his clipboard with a firm nod. "But first I need to ensure you fit the requirements." He began looking for the correct paper and then brought the paper to the front of all his paperwork. "Now then, are you the best at what you do?" Terry laughed. "Well you should already know that he's currently rated the top child/teen actor in America so I think that requirement has already been met." The scouter nodded as he wrote it down and looked back up "Alright but for the next one is what I am not sure of. Are you currently attending high school?"

I smiled as I nodded quickly. "Technically speaking I am! I may not be going to a public high school but I am attending classes. In fact, Terry is my teacher as well as my agent and bodyguard."

Terry nodded to confirm what I said was true. "I have met all the requirements to teach him his education on the road and he is currently on high school level lessons where he is supposed to be."

The man slowly nodded, showing his understanding as he wrote it down. "Then in that case… You can attend!"

I blinked. "That's it?"

"Yes sir! All your dedication and hard work is what has been recognized and we want to see the hope of the world grow within the best of the best. So with that said, would you, Kai Brugger, like to attend Hope's Peak Academy as the Ultimate Actor?" The man asked.

Terry looked to me with the same look he always gave me. It was hard and strong but gentle and sweet. I always knew he was secretly saying this is a fantastic opportunity but he would be okay if I rejected the offer too. But I didn't even need to think on it. I looked back to the scouter and replied to him with one, slow nod of approval.

 **12 hours later…**

Michael Strahan and Lara Spencer sat on the set getting ready to greet the country as they did every day. Soon the director came up and gave them the countdown. The timer hit zero and the cameras turned on. Lara smiled and began. "Good Morning America, welcome back and might I say we have a very special story to open up with, isn't that right Michael?"

"Yes indeed Lara, we have a very special guest coming in to tell all of America what this young, prodigy actor has in store for the future." Michael replied. The comment got the live audience to swoon with interest and excitement. "Yes that's right and what I'll say right now is that it is a mind-boggling change that's gonna blow you out of your seat! So let's not waste any time!"

"He's the little actor with big wins under his name with nearly 20 Oscars in his possession, has been in a plethora of movies, shows, games, anime, and even audio books, the child/teen actor of this decade…" Lara started.

"…And probably the next 5 or 6 decades to come too, if you know what I mean," Michael whispered comically which got Lara and the audience laughing before she continued.

"Please give a warm welcome to Kai Brugger!" Lara shouted as the audience stood up and cheered loudly. That was my queue so I took my deep breath and entered the set with a big smile. I called out to the audience whose screams turned absolutely wild when they saw me. I high fived the closer people before making my way to Michael and Lara, giving Michael a firm handshake and Lara a hug, greeting them both as we then sat down.

Michael shook his hand out before he commented, "Wow I thought you just finished shooting a teen romance movie, not an arm wrestling reality show."

Everyone including myself couldn't help but laugh. I looked to the side and replied, "Well you don't know what kind of things a man's gotta do in the name of love." The girls of the audience swooned as everyone else laughed more.

"Oh no, trust me. I wouldn't." Michael followed up again making us chuckle.

"So Kai let's cut straight to the point. Do you know why you've been brought in to be our first guest this morning?" Lara asked.

I looked away thoughtfully before replying, "Only because my agent has a mouth almost as big as Michael's?"

The audience not only laughed but gasped at the sudden burn I threw at the black host. He just blinked at me staring in comical silence which made us laugh. He finally stated, "Wow. I was just dissed on my own show. I guess I gotta go home now."

He was getting up to leave before me and Lara pulled him back down, all three of us smiling and giggling like five year olds. Then l looked to both of them, showing I was gonna be serious this time. "It's because I had a meeting with a scouter after our final shoot for the movie we just wrapped up."

"And what exactly was this meeting with this particular scouter about?" Michael followed up. I shuffled in my seat for a moment before looking back up. "Well… It turns out that a certain school has taken notice of me in Japan and the headmaster has asked if I would like to attend this academy."

Lara nodded as I went on. "What academy are you referring to?"

I left a big, dramatic pause as I saw most of the live audience literally got to the edge of their seats, their curiosity and intrigue clearly visible. "I've been asked to attend at Hope's Peak Academy as the Ultimate Actor!"

Everyone gasped except for the hosts, who simply nodded at the reveal; having already been told in advance by Terry. "That's right America! Our own Kai Brugger here has been selected to attend an elite academy that basically guarantees successful lives for its graduates! How amazing is that?!" Lara asked and the audience erupted again with cheers. I couldn't help but blush from the praise again.

"So Kai what I bet all of America is wondering now is when will you be leaving and will we be getting updates on how things are going in Japan?" Michael questioned.

I couldn't help but smile as I was about to drop a major bombshell on them. "Well actually I was told something that I am now allowed to share with all of America." Again everyone began whispering gently to each other. Even the hosts this time looked at me with the same curious expression the audience wore. "I am actually attending the school in America!" Gasps resonated throughout the set. "That's right! Hope's Peak Academy is opening up a brand new school back in Los Angeles, California and fifteen other American Ultimates were recruited along with me to be the first American class to attend the new Hope's Peak!"

Everyone began murmuring even louder as they whispered their amazement at such a reveal. Even the hosts look flabbergasted. Soon Lara broke the silent air. "That's such an amazing thing to hear. They must have really kept this on the down low if there hasn't been any word about such a prestigious school begin built in America."

I nodded before continuing, "Yeah, they even told me it's because they wanna see if they can bring even greater hope to the world by opening up an academy in multiple countries, starting with one of the most populated countries of all, the good ole US of A."

Michael shook his head as he adjusted himself. "Incredible, incredible. Now tell us something. You are the Ultimate Actor. That is your title, correct?" I nodded. He then sat more upright and looked at me with a serious look and spoke in a serious tone. "This school is a big energy can of success for you upon graduation. But don't you already have that? You're making millions of dollars, you've got the championship belt of the number one teen actor in America, and you even got a star on the walk of fame. Why would someone go to a school that guarantees a future when you've already secured it yourself?"

"Oh, yes good question." Lara complimented before Michael added another question. "Are you that power hungry?" Which made myself, Lara, and the audience burst out in laughter again before we went back to seriousness. "Yes he does bring up a good point. Why attend the academy when you've already got what it can give?"

I looked down, feeling slightly embarrassed by what I was about to confess. "Well you see… I never really got to attend a public school before and I don't really have any friends my age. Don't get me wrong I love to be around all the amazing actors and actresses that I work with but I generally get along with the older ones, not many my age. Also I never got to experience what it's like to be a normal kid in a school."

"Sure the students will all be elites in their selected talents and the school is technically a private one but it'll probably be the closest thing I can get and my one and only chance to try something like this ever. I wanna be able to make friends to just hang out with. No work, no interviews, or acting all friendly towards each other for a good publicity image. I want actual meaningful relationships that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. Friendships, companionships, and I may even find the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. That last one might be a stretch with the conditions of it being a school but if there is even a tiny chance I wanna take it before I lose it forever. So in a way, I'm not looking for guarantee success for my career but for success in developing the personal relationships I've only dreamed of."

The entire audience sighed, heartfelt by my confession. That didn't help me feeling any less flustered as I wriggled around in my seat uncomfortably. Michael smiled as he placed his hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry. I have no doubt things will work out for you." I couldn't help but smile at his words as I sheepishly made eye contact with him. He lightly patted my shoulder a few times when I did.

"Well thank you again for coming in and sharing this with us, Kai. Will there be any chance America will get to see how you're doing at the academy?" Lara asked.

I chuckled softly before looking to her. "Unfortunately no. The school will not allow any cameras for shows or bloggers on the premise and the general public is asked to stay away so that the students won't feel crowded and overwhelmed when they enter the school for the first time."

"But the students themselves are more than free to be themselves so I could take photos and record videos that I can share online. That way people can see how things are going not only for me but for my other fifteen classmates." I explained to them.

"They say you can view the other students that wish to share their information online so you can see who you will be attending classes with. Have you looked into it?" Michael prodded me but I shook my head. "It's like learning the entire cast of characters in a movie a month before it is released in theatres. It will just spoil the fun of meeting new and exciting characters so I'd rather wait until the school year starts in the next two months."

"Well we are just excited for you and we hope that everything works out for you." Lara commented which I thanked her for with an appreciated nod. "Let's give big hand for Kai everybody." Once again the audience began clapping and cheering just as loudly, maybe even louder, as before when I first arrived. I waved to them as the camera zoomed around me and focused in on me.

 ***3** **rd** **Person View***

The camera was focused in on Kai as he waved to the audience whose cheering echoed throughout the relatively big office as the man in the big cushioned chair watched the show. The screen to the TV behind the desk was turned off and soon there was a knock at the door. "Come in." The deep voice grumbled.

The office door opened as the Japanese scouter from before opened the door and entered. He quickly approached the desk and bowed. "Greetings Headmaster Lovington, I have marvelous news. All sixteen of the students we originally got word of from Headmaster Kirigiri has all accepted a place here at our academy."

"Yes, yes I already know. I just finished watching the morning show with Kai Brugger." Headmaster Lovington replied tossing his hand out to the side, limply.

"Oh so Kai has already let all of America know of the academy's existence in America then? I bet he also talked about his reason for wanting to attend like he did me, huh? That boy has a bright future as well as the other fifteen." The scouter smiled as he looked through the profiles of the collected students he recruited.

"But can we be sure about that?" Lovington asked which made the scouter looked up in confusion. "I don't understand what you mean, sir."

"Think about it. Things might not all go according to plan. There's always something we can't predict will happen. It's only human nature to overlook even the tiniest possibility right?" He lectured.

The scouter shook his head in bewilderment by what was being said. "Headmaster? Are you feeling fine? Your voice sounds a bit scratchy. Also what tiny possibilities could we have overlook?"

"No, no! I'm perfectly fine. As for those tiny, isty bitsy things, well you got an earthquake that could flatten us all. They're quite common in states like California. Or or! The chance a major snow storm could bury us all alive!" He exclaimed throwing both arms into the air as his palms facing upwards and bounced a little from being thrown up.

The scouter was completely lost now. Sure earthquakes were common in California but the school's foundation was reinforced so it could withstand earthquakes and knowing snow was very rare for the Golden State did not help make any sense of what the headmaster was spewing out. "Or…" The chair began to slowly turn towards his direction now as it slowly creaked which also did not help calm the nerves the scouter felt tense up so suddenly. "Or maybe a tidal wave? A tidal wave that will tower over us, wash away our hopes and dreams once its looming shadow crashes down and crushes us. A tidal wave of DESPAIR!" The last word had a suddenly change in voice as a higher pitched voice screamed it out almost comically.

The scouter's eyes widened in horror as he saw Headmaster Lovington fully reveal himself at the last sentence, only to find the headmaster that Kirigiri had hired on sat there with his wrinkled, empty eye sockets pooled with his dried, pink blood in them. But that wasn't all that he noticed. His nose looked to have been cut off as well as his tongue and teeth as his jaw hung lifelessly down. The same pink blood slightly tricking out of all the open wounds showing he had been dead for quite some time but his body was still fresh. The scouter screamed (pink?) bloody murder as he stumbled back, trembling madly. He ended up tripping over the big rug on the ground as the files on his clipboard fell out and scattered across the floor as a result of him falling.

Soon the body that seemed to sit up on its own slowly fell forward with a sickening and squelching thud on the desk as the body began leaking the last of its fresh blood out on the mahogany desk. The Japanese man would then see what was speaking to him just a second ago and what had most likely killed Lovington. It was a stuffed bear that was half black and white with a devil-looking red eye and a big, matching, devilish smile on the black side with a normal button-looking eye and small, cute bear muzzle on the white side.

His face turned purple from fear and green from the nausea he immediately felt upon seeing this bear standing behind the dead headmaster's body. The bear then began walking up the headmaster's back and stepped on his head which squeezed out more of the unusually colored blood out of his head. The man couldn't handle it as his weak stomach exploded and he vomited right there on the floor with small chunks splattering almost every profile on the ground. He slightly coughed as he looked back to see the bear standing on the edge of the desk.

"Hello Mr. Yamato! Nice to finally introduce myself! Unfortunately Lovington asked me to tell you he would be too preoccupied to tend to the school so I have taken upon myself the responsibility of being the headmaster's academy! Wait that came out wrong! Dammit, I knew I should have written this down on a flash card! Oh well I think you got what I was trying to say." The bear cooed gently after throwing a fit.

"W-What the hell? You killed him! Why d-did you…?" Yamato couldn't even finish as he was too freaked out.

"Don't worry everything will be alright once we hit the climax of your story. Speaking of which I'd say that same climax that got to poor Lovington here will hit the faculty of the school right about… NOW!" The bear had thrown his arms up at that and suddenly Yamato could hear screams echoing from outside the office.

He quickly put two and two together as his staggered breathing hitched against his chest. "The faculty!" He whispered in horror as he quickly crawled over to the door only to find it had been locked from outside despite the lock being inside. He heard the men and women Lovington hired on as teachers, janitors, and other critically important staff members of the school as cries of terror and death carried throughout the hallways. He desperately shook the door trying to get it open but finding he lacked the strength due to the shock he felt ringing in his head.

Suddenly he saw a bear shadow loom over him as he looked back slowly, shaking like a cold puppy that came out of the bath. He began feeling the fear well up as he tried shaking to doorknob to get it open. As he approached him, the bear began to whisper, "A tidal wave that will tower over us…" Yamato felt tears quickly escaping his eyes as he began beating on the door. "…To wash away your hopes and dreams…" He began kicking at the doorknob only to break it off as he began crying out for help, clawing at the cherry doors. "…Once its looming shadow crashes down and crushes you…" Yamato kept clawing even though by this point he'd lost all his fingernails and the blood had begun to pour out from his fingers. "…A tidal wave of despair…" Yamato weakly looked back as the bear's shadow practically consumed him with him standing right above his weeping form. "That's me…" His red eye lit up as claws extended out of his paws. Yamato's eyes widened as his trembling could create the worst earthquake ever recorded in California history. "MONOKUMA!" The bear leapt up as Yamato screamed out as the reflection of his red, wet eyeball showed Monokuma's claws closing in on him until...

The sound of flesh tearing and cries of pure agony, pain, and despair rang through the office and outside as well from the remaining staff and faculty. The blood of the man poured out and was splattering everywhere. It went across the door, the tables and couches, the rug, and across every student profile that still laid scattered out on the ground, now drenched with vomit chunks and blood splatters.

Monokuma breathed heavily as he stood on top of the now deceased and shredded up corpse of the previous scouter before he looked back. He waddled over to the files and picked up the portrait shot with Kai's smiling face on it, which now had streaks of blood and the vomit pieces all over his picture.

"Puhuhuhuhu. Very soon, my students. Soon I will greet you to this pure world of mine, where you will all feel my despair!" With that Monokuma slashed at the file, slicing Kai's picture into three diagonal shreds as they gently floated down, landed in the pool of Yamato's pink blood, and soaked it up until the picture became completely unrecognizable.

 _ **End of Prologue: Good Morning Despairica!**_

 _I am finally back with something fresh! Just like Yamato's body! X3 I hope everyone has enjoyed this opening act to a despair inducing story! Just so you know I will be taking a lot of credit for the story but I do have some collaboration and help coming from two friends of mine who agreed to help me progress the story so it's as original as possibly! Those buddies are Weapon X Foxfurry and ChaosFlash912! Thank you both for agreeing to help me with this story and I can't wait to share my dream cast of Ultimates with you all! Until next time have a despair filled day! PUHUHUHUHUHU!_


	2. Day 1 Part 1

**2 months later…**

 **Day 1**

It was much bigger than I thought. When I saw most regular high schools, they were pretty big on their own but I felt like Hope's Peak Academy was three of those normal high school buildings combined into one gargantuan school. I couldn't help but tremble before the radiant power and might I felt like the building was giving off. Terry stood next to me with my luggage in his arms as we both blankly stared off at the building.

I quickly lost my focus on it as I looked around and sure enough what I was told was right. Not only were we the only ones standing outside, there was not a single pedestrian or hidden camera in sight. Yes I know if there was a hidden camera it wouldn't be so obvious but me and Terry were so use to being spied on by the paparazzi and fans that we have developed a kind of sixth sense when it comes to that.

But I digress. Terry let out a big breath before looking to me in my current clothing which was a long-sleeved gray shirt with a red vest over it, which was zipped halfway up my chest. The vest also had the small theatre symbol, with the happy and sad masks and a ribbon flowing behind them, sewed onto it. Besides that I wore simply blue denim jeans and gray US Polo Assn shoes with brown leather patches on the heels and front flaps of them. My hair had been cut down to a buzz cut since I preferred my hair short and I wasn't gonna be in a movie for a while now.

I looked at Terry when I felt his gaze had been on me for a long period of time and he quickly looked away before speaking. "So we got you plenty changes of clothes, your hygiene essentials, your favorite books so you won't get bored during your free time, an Oscar to show off to your friends, plenty of 8x6 signed autographs in case those new friends are psycho crazy to meet you. Oh what else is there? Did I forget something? I did, didn't I?" Terry went off in his own little world which I quickly pulled him out of by taking the bags.

"Terry, Terry, Terry! It's fine. We probably have too much packed anyways. Please stop freaking out." I begged him as I shook my head in slight annoyance. Terry looked away with a sigh. "Sorry it's just… This is the first time we've gone our separate ways and I'm worried you won't be able to do well without me there."

I couldn't help but smile gently at him. "It's not like I'm moving far away. You are allowed to visit us despite the fact we're living in personal dorms at the school. This school year will fly by fast and soon you and I will get to continue to make movies and games and other wonderful stories that make people happy. But I want a chance to be happy to."

Terry could only nod as he patted my shoulder. "I know, kid. I know that too well." We just stood there looking at each other. There was something I wanted to say but the air felt too dense that I felt flustered to say so. "Kai, there's something I want you to know." I felt my heart lift when he said that. 'Was he gonna say what I want to say?' I thought. He took a deep breath, paused when it looked like he was gonna speak, and then looked away and said softly, "I'm proud of your choice and I can't wait to meet your new friends." And that dropped my heart right back down to the same tense feeling from before. I lowered my view from him. "Thanks Terry. Well I… best head in before I'm late for my first day."

With that mumbled I turned around and began slowly making my way to the front doors. But before I got too close I heard a shout from behind me. "Kai, wait!" I spun around and saw Terry charging at me. I thought he was gonna tackle another poor man that was getting too close to me but quickly recalled that no one else was around. That's when he stopped right in front of me and quickly pulled me into a tight hug. I gasped at the sudden contact, dropping all my bags on the ground, but soon felt myself holding onto him just as tight.

"Please, take care of yourself and contact me if you need anything at all. You know I'll be there." He whispered to me. It still wasn't what I wanted to hear but I took great comfort from his words nonetheless. Yet I still couldn't find the courage to bring up what I wanted to say originally so instead replied with, "I will. Thank you for everything."

We slowly separated as we smiled to each other before I quickly picked up my dropped baggage and made my way to the door. I placed a hand on one of the door handles before I looked back one last time. All he did was nod to me which I returned as I pulled the door open and entered the school.

All I could say was I felt like the inside didn't even compare to what I saw outside. The commons was what I estimated to be over 30 feet high as I could hear my footsteps echo loudly throughout the copious space. "Wow." That was all I could find myself saying as I suddenly felt something collide with my moving foot. I quickly looked down after regaining my balance to see I nearly tripped over someone's bag. 'Must belong to another student,' I wondered as I looked over and saw many bags piled up next to each other.

Judging by the fact there were a little more than fifteen bags scattered arround, I could only assume that all the other students had already arrived. 'Guess that means I'm the last one. So much for making a good first impression on the first day, right? Now they'll all probably think I'm all stuck up for being "fashionably late",' I thought in agony. I could feel my nerves bundling up in my stomach again but quickly noticed the bags were surrounding a table with a single pamphlet.

Curious, I set my bags down as I cautiously stepped over a lot of the other bags, trying not to step on one and possibly break something valuable. I quickly made my way through that maze of personal belongings and reached out for the small paper. It was colorfully drawn like a kid did it but had typing on it like it was printed off a computer.

The text read, _"Welcome, Student #16! Please leave any belongings at this table and join the rest of your class in the auditorium. You will have some time to talk and get to know your classmates a little before we begin our opening ceremony! Enjoy your stay here at Hope's Peak Academy!"_

I figured that the other fifteen letters all had their own message depending on what number you grabbed, which I assumed were for when they arrived. For example; The number one card would probably say, 'Welcome Student #1! You are the first one here so please wait in the auditorium for the rest of your class to arrive.' But that was of course speculation but I was confident I was right about that.

I looked around wondering if there was a map or something to help me find the auditorium only to spot it a little ways down the hallway with a big entrance and a noticeable sign that read auditorium. I quickly began making my way around everyone's bags once again and quickly sprinted down the hall once I was free from the confided bags on the floor. I quickly slowed myself as I got closer and soon stopped in front of the door. I felt my heart pounding. I couldn't believe how nervous I felt myself flare up in that instant. I never got this nervous on set or on stage in front of hundreds of people so why was I freezing up with stage fright?

I quickly closed my eyes and began breathing. I imagined myself smiling and happy and calm. I felt those feelings quickly take hold of me as my nerves and stiffness flowed out of my head, through my fingers and toes.

I opened my eyes and smiled as I confidently walked forward and pushed the doors open. The lights quickly flared in my eyes for a moment as I noticed the house light and stage lights on. The auditorium was huge in the fact it seated approximately 300 to 400 people and the stage was beautiful! Giant red curtains lined the front, most likely made of velvet, and the stage that extended out from the curtains had a red carpet running horizontally with the stage and in the center was a fancy office desk.

My focus on the stage and everything about this place quickly got distracted as I soon noticed thirty eyes staring at me. It was the other Ultimate students of my class. I guess my entrance didn't go unnoticed. In fact I bet I made it too big. 'I made myself look like I was the big shot who didn't care if he was late didn't I?' I felt my hands clamor up but quickly shook it off as I smiled at the fifteen other classmates.

"Hello there, everyone! I am..." I began but before I realized what was happening a sudden squeal shook the auditorium walls. "KAI BRUGGER!" Suddenly I saw a girl come rushing straight at me with a dust cloud formed around her feet as she charged at me like a bull in the ring and I was the red flag. She stopped right up in my face making me lean back from how close she was leaning in.

I quickly looked at her to see she wore a light blue button up with short sleeves and a thin brown vest that wasn't buttoned up at all. It was also completely covered with too many buttons and pins of characters and words. I looked down to see her brown shorts and light brown sneakers. My sight quickly went back up to her face. Her blonde hair was tied back in a ponytail as her brown eyes scanned over me. I also could see faint freckles peppering her cheeks and my cheeks flared up as she leaned even closer.

I was scared she would do something so I quickly shouted, "Excuse me, can you please back up?!"

She then blinked like she suddenly had woken up and gasped before she stepped away, allowing me to lean forward again with a heavy sigh of relief. "I am so sorry! I was just so excited that _the_ Kai Brugger was here that I forgot my place. I shouldn't have run up to such a big star without permission." She said sadly, with her head hanging down and her index fingers poking against each other.

I kinda felt bad for shouting at her like that so I quickly shook my hands at her. "No it's just you took me by surprise. Besides we are supposed to be classmates so please don't put me on a pedestal. I wanna be friends. You know… equals."

She looked up at me shocked. "You wanna be my equal? AWESOME! Hey everyone! Even though Kai is a big celebrity he wants us to be equal to him so treat him like your best friend okay?" She hollered to them which echoed throughout the vast room. I felt a giant bead of sweat run down the side of my head at this. 'She's quite energetic and loves to get up close and personal. Also I'm not too sure she helped my situation any better with that statement.' I pondered as I saw her turn towards me again. "Oh that's right since we're equals now I guess I should introduce myself huh?"

"Well my name is Brenda Bates and here at the school I guess my title would be the Ultimate Collector. It's such an honor to meet you!" Brenda introduced herself with her head tilted to the side with a cheerful grin.

I tilted my head like her but from pure confusion. "Ultimate Collector? I didn't know that was a talent."

She looked at me and nodded. "Yep! I've made a life of collecting… well everything! Anything from books and comics to movies and posters. I also have a figurine collection, collectable items collection, a rock collection, a convertible car collection, a…" This was now when I would interrupt her when what she said suddenly made my mind boggle.

"Wait what?! Did you say a convertible car collection?" I repeated back. All she did was nod excitedly. "Oh of course! Convertible cars are some of the rarest collectables a person can own. Trust me when I say I had to lose a lot of my greatest treasures in order to get some of these 1970 oldie vehicles."

'Well her dedication to her collections is rather intriguing.' I thought happily. "So what other collections do you have?"

She seemed to grin evilly as her face darkened. It honestly made me cringe. "Well I have every movie, game, DVD and Blu-Ray of TV shows and anime, and audio books you starred in."

"Really?" I asked worried. Her face suddenly returned to normal as she giggled. "Of course! If there's a person or celebrity I love I collect everything they make! I especially loved you voice in the audio book, "Lovers in Quarrel" by Peter Remington."

I smiled at that. "Oh so you do use your collections? I thought you would leave all the collections in boxes to not be used and just collect dust on the shelf like how most collectors are."

She put her finger to her chin, thoughtfully. "Well I wouldn't say that. Most everything I can't touch anyways. For example I can't drive so I can't even use any of the 17 convertibles I have and all the audio books are on my kindle and I listen to it when I need to go to sleep."

I felt like if this was an anime I'd simply fall flat on my face right now. 'Does she only use my audio book to catch some z's? So much for fans appreciating my work.' I straightened myself and smiled. "Well thanks for the talk, Brenda. I'll see ya later. I should talk to the others before the ceremony starts."

"Oh of course! You need to get acquainted with everyone! I'll talk to you later!" She beamed as she walked away with a giddy skip in her step.

I sighed heavily as I walked further in. I looked around and saw a boy sitting in the auditorium seat which I now noticed all of them had a movable desk top that was folded to the side of each seat. It was most likely to provide a table if we needed it while we sat at an assembly or something. Anyway the boy sat there with a laptop on the desk. He had dark green hair that was spiked up with many small spikes and the sides of his head were shaved of hair. His white skin seemed to lightly glow along with the neon purple hoodie and neon green jeans both of which seem to have a lighter color digital pattern running up the legs and sleeves of his clothes. This same pattern that was a shiny gray ran along the side of his black shoes. His hazel eyes moved super-fast across the screen just like his fingers that whizzed across the keyboard with no slow down and no hesitation. He looked like a professional programmer or something from how fast he typed.

'He looks nice. Let's try talking to him.' I pondered over as I quickly approached him. "Hi there! What's your name?" He continued typing unfazed as if he didn't heard me. "Um… hello? Did you hear me?" No response.

'Is this guy really ignoring me?' I pondered angrily. I felt my cheeks puff out at this guy's attitude but I wouldn't let him beat me! "So my name is…"

"Kai Brugger, Ultimate Actor." The guy said not even looking at me. This took me by complete surprise as he then suddenly continued talking nonstop. "You have earned all 17 Oscars you were nominated for, you agent/bodyguard/homeschool teacher is Terry Bobinski who is currently 36 years old, you have an allergy to pineapple and most pollens, your favorite area to work in is movies; more specifically musicals, you were originally growing up in St. Andrew…"

"Now hold on a moment! How do you know all this stuff about me?!" I exclaimed at him. It was like he was the Ultimate Fan that didn't care he met his idol. He let out an annoyed sigh before looking to me. "I suppose you're going to find out sooner than later so I'll sum it all down with an introduction. I am Paul Sharpe, the Ultimate Hacker. That's all you need to know." Paul replied before looking back to his laptop.

'Ultimate Hacker? Then he hacked some sites to get my personal information?' I wondered.

"And no it didn't go through any old sites. I went through all the emails of all of my classmates so I could get a better read on all of your characters." Paul corrected.

I felt my breath catch in my esophagus. 'Did he just read my mind?' Then what he said hit me. "Wait, you've been through my emails?!" I shouted angrily. "Those are private!"

Once again he sighed before his head whipped to me with a glare equal to the one I gave him. "A hacker doesn't care about such a thing as privacy. That's the purpose of hacking. To gain the information one needs to better understand his enemy and to exploit and blackmail them if necessary. You wouldn't understand but then again you had such a simple minded man as a teacher for the past eleven years give or take."

It was one thing to say such horrible things but for him to taint the image of Terry by calling him simple minded was taking things too far for me. Before I could react I heard a small whimper behind me.

I turned around to see a relatively short girl who was probably just less than five feet tall. She wore a light blue jacket with glittery snowflakes going up from the bottom of the sleeves and jacket to the middle of them. Her matching blue shorts that stopped at the middle of her thighs had the same white glittery lining on the sides of the shorts and her light gray loafers each had a big glittered snowflake on each toe of the shoes. Her lavender eyes were darting along the ground as she lightly stroked one of her big, black pigtails on the very sides of her head nervously.

"T-That's… m-m-mean…" She whispered, not looking at us. I was about to ask what she meant before I heard the desk Paul was sitting at get folded down and him standing up. "So what? Just because you feel what I do is not as wholesome as your little dance on the ice doesn't mean I'm gonna let you lecture me. Then again you wouldn't even be able to give a mouse the time of day with your petite nature, Sienna Donnelly." He spat at her like her name itself was poison on his tongue as he walked away to find a more secluded spot.

I gave him one final glare before looking back at the girl who looked like she was on the verge of tears. I quickly walked up and she jumped when she saw me fast approaching. I raised my hands up in a surrendering manner to show I wasn't gonna do anything. "Whoa hey listen. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to come at you like that. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

Her head lightly drooped as she breathed out. "I'm… s-sorry." That took me off guard as I shook my head. "No don't go apologizing. You have nothing to be sorry about… um Sienna right?"

She looked up slightly with the tiniest nod I've ever seen someone give. I almost found this timid nature of hers adorable like a mouse but with what Paul had said I figured it would be best to keep that comment to myself. "Yeah… I am Sienna… D-Donnelly. I'm the… Ultimate Figure Skate-er."

I smiled at her. "I see. That's what he meant by your dance on the ice. That's so cool! I could never get myself to actually keep my balance when I tried ice skating once. How do you manage that?" I asked. But she didn't respond she just looked down, playing with her other pigtail now. "Um… so how long have you figure skated for? You gonna be an Olympic champion? What inspired you to start doing this?" I kept asking her questions, hoping to spark up a conversation or by this point a word from her but I think I made her feel rushed as I pushed all these questions on her. "Well that is… I mean I… I just kinda…Yes? Er, no that is…" She whimpered, lightly trembling.

Suddenly I felt a massive brick wall bump me from behind and I felt myself shrink upon seeing a musclebound behemoth standing at a whopping six feet or maybe even higher. "I suggest you knock it off. You're overwhelming her." His calm yet intimidating voice warned me.

The girl looked up at him and began sniffling before looking down. "I'm so sorry. I'll understand if you won't forgive me." She managed to say without stuttering. She then covered her face as she bolted off. A part of me wanted to chase after her and apologize but I figured that wouldn't help.

I sighed in defeat and looked up at the guy. I now took notice of what he looked like and it somewhat didn't surprise me. He wore a black, skintight T-shirt that was tucked into his gray skinny jeans. He wore black tennis shoes and aviator sunglasses with a gold frame on them and his black hair was cut in a way that made him look too much like Arnold Schwarzenegger.

He soon unfolded his arms and brought his hand to me. I figured he would punch me for making a small girl like Sienna cry so I closed my eyes and braced myself, only to feel him pat my head like a small child; Which in retrospect I probably was compared to him. "Do not feel bad. She is much too self-conscious to speak to anyone. To be honest I think you got her to talk more than anyone else here."

"Is… that a good thing?" I asked. He soon removed his hand from me and cracked a smile. "So this is the Ultimate Actor. You're much different from what I expected." He chuckled.

I leaned my head to the side and raised my eyebrow. "How so?"

"Well, all the actors that had hired me on never really seemed as kind and considerate as you. They were all selfish and greedy bastards." He stated with a low growl detectable in his words. I looked at him with surprise. "What do you mean 'hired on'?" I questioned. He looked surprised. "You still haven't figured it out? Then let me enlighten you. My name is Jayden Hutchinson and I'm the Ultimate Bodyguard! If you need anything I'll be there!"

"Oh yeah, I guess I should have known that. You posture and presence reminds me of Terry, my personal agent and bodyguard. I bet you two would get along swimmingly." I told him which he smiled at. "That's good to know. I bet he'll take great comfort knowing I'll be here to watch out for you in his steed. Believe me when I say I can guarantee your safety from whatever danger awaits you."

"Um, are you sure you're not making an empty promise with that?" I probed him. But he seemed unfazed as he shook his head. "Not at all, sir."

'Did he just call me sir?" I dwelled upon that sudden change in tone as he continued. "I have been hired on not only by celebrities but famous CEO's of companies and also country leaders. Do you recall the attempted assassination on our current president when he was doing his electoral run through Colorado last year?" I nodded, remembering how the news addressed that his recently hired on head of security had pushed the president out of the way of a sniper and both got out without a scratch. "Well that was me."

My eyes snapped open in shock. "What?! It was you who saved the president?!" He nodded again before pressing on. "I have a very keen sixth sense when it comes to detecting danger. I developed it when I trained my body to learn the seven different arts of self-defense." I felt like my eyes went even wider than humanly possible. "You know all seven different self-defense arts?!"

Again all he did was nod before he moved on like I didn't even ask anything. "Taekwondo, Karate, Boxing, Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Krav Maga, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. I had mastered all of these arts by the time I turned 13."

'Wow, the fact that someone as big and surprisingly gently as him to do such amazing feats is too impressive for words to describe. I'm glad I managed to get on his good side.' I thought as I saw him turn away from me. "Well I'll let you get going. You've got a lot more people to get to know. We can't have you wasting your time with an underling like me." With that said he walked off towards where Sienna had run off most likely to try and calm her down. Though one look at him and she might faint. I began wondering what other amazing people I'd meet here as I turned only to find a bright light turn on in my face.

I screeched a bit as I covered my eyes with the back of my hand. I heard a girl hum quietly as she seemed to observe me. She then turned off her light and I blinked a bit to help my vision refocus. I soon saw a very filthy girl covered in dirt with her hand on her hips looking at me with her lips mushed together tightly. She wore a brown jumpsuit with a black line going along the sides of the entire suit including the long sleeves and pant legs and wore muddy, brown work boots that were tracking footprints behind her. There was a brown, leather belt on her hips with many digging tools attached such as a hand shovel, small electric drills, and even a big pickaxe that leaned against her side. She wore a yellow helmet with a light attached to the top that seemed a bit big on her as it covered all her forehead and you could barely see her eyebrows and her dark brown hair had two short braided pigtails with black hair elastics and the ends cut to make a line. Her face had dirt covering so much of it you could hardly see her white skin but you could make out the white in her blue eyes.

She leaned back and hummed to herself. "Just as I thought," She mumbled. I looked at her bewildered as I stepped back. "Just as you thought?" She nodded before she picked up her axe and slung it over her right shoulder, keeping her left hand on her hip. "If you were to go in a cave, you would die."

Her sudden comment threw me off guard. "I'm sorry what?" She let out an exasperated sigh and looked and spoke to me like I was a small child. "Listen, I can tell you don't like to go play around in the dirt or get yourself dirty in any way and because of that I wouldn't be able to take you with me into a cave. You'd die in there."

"And you can just tell that?" I asked. "Of course I can! When you work in caves as long as I have then it becomes second nature to work in that darkness." She retorted.

"That sounds… interesting for a um… uh…" I couldn't quite tell what she was and she looked at me with surprise. "Wait, have you never heard of me? Oh my God, that's a first." She muttered to herself before looking back at me. "The name's Shana O'Conner and I am, of course, the Ultimate Miner!"

"Ultimate Miner, huh? That actually sounds pretty cool." I complimented. She grinned big at me as she pointed to herself with her thumb. "You know it! I am the best of the best! Been working in this industry with Dad ever since I was 10! It may be dangerous but I knew I could handle it! Dad always told me how he did things down there and I proved to him and everyone else that I paid attention when I snuck down after him and showed them my skill."

"You followed after you father in a cave with no experience at all? Wouldn't he still be mad despite what he taught you?" I questioned her. She scratched her cheek with her fingernails that I noticed were not only dirty on top but had collected dirt underneath her nails too. "Yeah, he was when he found me but that quickly turned around when I showed him my first discovery."

"What do you mean your first discovery? What did you find?" I pushed the question, finding my curiosity peaking. She smiled as she turned. "I'm not telling you!" She snickered as she walked away spinning her pickax around. I looked at her dumbfounded that she would keep a person on edge like that. 'What a tease! So much for everyone being normal here.' I grumbled to myself before pressing on.

I soon saw the next student approaching me and I noticed he was much different in terms of his skin color. This guy was obviously African American because of his black skin but it's not like that was a problem. In fact I always wanted a black friend but my only concern was how eccentric this guy was gonna be compared to the others. His brown eyes had a pair of square, black frame glasses over them and black and red headphones hanging around his neck. He actually wore a purple button up shirt with the top button undone with a red tie tucked behind his dark blue vest. The shirt was tucked into nice dress pants that matched the vest's color and a brown belt seen at the bottom of the vest. He also had very nice dress shoes on that shined in the lighting but it was almost as shiny as the skin on his head. Yep this guy was as bald as can be but I thought it looked good for him despite him spinning a black and gray fedora in between his hands and placing it on his head.

Anyways he quickly walked up to me with the biggest grin on his face. "Hey Kai, my man! How's it going bro? You've been okay?" He held his hand out to high-five me which I returned but he gripped my hand instead and pulled me into what I guess was called a bro hug where we kept our gripped hands between us as we patted each other's backs with our free hand. I was surprised this guy was being so friendly like I had known him for years. 'At least someone around here seems really friendly.' I smiled at the thought when we backed off.

I couldn't help but stare at him and he gave me a weird look of confusion. "What?" I realized I was just staring and I shook myself out of it. "Oh sorry I was just surprised that I found someone normal around here." When I told him that all he did was laugh vigorously. "Hey man, nobody around here is _normal_ by any means which includes me."

I scratched the back of my head nervously. "Yeah, I guess." He smiled at me and shook his head. "Hey there's no need to get so flustered. We're all here to become the best of the best even if we are technically already revered that way just by being here." This guy was clever. I couldn't argue with that logic even if I tried. But with what he said, that made me bring up the question, "Speaking of which what is it that you did to get a spot here?"

He looked shocked. "Oh frizz! I completely forgot to introduce myself. Great, now I'm getting all worked up. Heh, sorry man. Name's Damian Eaves and around here I'm known as the Ultimate DJ."

"Oh, so you're a DJ. You're much more formal than I would have expected." I confessed to him. I don't know why but this guy was so easy to talk to. Gladly he didn't seem offended as he smiled at my statement. "Nuh-uh, I got more class than that. I don't need hardcore music, a punk outfit with an excessive amount of gold chains and rings on, and a ghetto speech to show people a good time. My music, whether it's fast and upbeat in the club or slow and soothing like a couple's night out, is for everyone to come together and have a fun time! I've put on shows all across the country and almost every time I get at least 5,000 people at each show." That caught me off guard.

'He gets nearly 5,000 people at every show? I wonder if it's his personality or his performance that makes him so popular. Maybe it's both.' I thought but as soon as my thought finished, a girl with a double barrel rifle came strolling past and suddenly Damian's eyes flashed as his head slowly turned to the girl as she sat down in a seat and began polishing the gun.

This light brown haired chick was seriously something with the green, Beretta fab jacket she wore, tight-fitting tan pants, with black boots, and a safari hat that had sunglasses on them. I also noticed her green eyes as they looked at her gun like she was caring for a small baby. I also felt a chill when I saw those eyes suddenly dart at me and I tensed up. 'Did she know I was staring at her?'

On a spur of the moment, Damian smiled as he walked over to her with a confident bounce in his step. I looked at him confused as he leaned against the back of the seat next to her with his right elbow. "Hey, there sweetie. I must say that you are a sight to behold. A woman like you has got such an exquisitely refined beauty."

I felt myself droop down at that. 'And there it is. Damian was a totally chill guy around his bros but it turns out he's also a complete and hopeless flirt for the ladies. I take back what I said earlier. I highly doubt his shows were popular because of his personality at all. It must just be the way he performs on stage.' I breathed out heavily as I walked over.

The girl made no reply to him as she continued polishing her rifle. Damian looked a bit defeated but shook it off as he pressed on. "Can I just say how your eyes are even greener than the Amazon Forest? Mother Nature herself must be jealous of the gorgeous flowers that grow in your eyes. But you don't need to be afraid to shed its seeds as I won't let a single tear of your flowers ever touch the undeserving ground for I will be the one to catch them just for you."

"Are you serious?" I mumbled feeling myself grow green as well but not like the flowers he mentioned but from the vomit growing up from the pits of my gut. Soon the girl smirked as she spoke to him. "Have you seen the beauty of the Amazon Forest?" This caught Damian off guard as he scratched his cheek. "Oh well uh… Not exactly but I have seen pictures of them in books and online."

She hummed to herself. "I see. So then even you should know that even the most beautiful flower…" Then without warning her hand dropped her cleaning cloth on her gun, grabbed a giant, Bowie knife that was strapped to her hip, and lunged it at Damian. The tip stopped pointblank on his nose as he softly bleated from the blinding speed of her and that knife. She then continued where she ended off by saying, "…Can also be the most deadly, isn't that right?" She asked not even looking at him, even when she grabbed the knife and jabbed it against his nose, she never once took her eyes away from her lap.

Damian looked like he was sweating profusely as he tried to speak. "W-Well… I-I-I-I…." If he was gonna say something she interrupted him. "Good. But next time, be sure to pick your prey more carefully." With that she just as quickly put the Bowie away as she brought it out and began cleaning her gun again. Damian then slowly straightened himself and walked away, looking very composed but as he got close to me all I heard him whisper was, "She's all yours man," Damian swiftly bolted away with a quiet yet panicked cry.

I looked back at him befuddled and shook my head at him. But then again I think anyone would have freaked out with the way she pulled that knife out, jabbed their nose without cutting them, and all without even so much as glancing at the knife or Damian. I knew I should have just left but I felt like I needed to say what came to mind even if I would regret it later. I stepped up and looked down at her. "Hey you didn't have to come off as forcefully as you did. Sure I'll admit the way he came off was annoying but couldn't you have been gentler?"

This was when she turned around and looked up at me. "I don't know the meaning of such words as gentle. Forceful is the only way to be. If I had been gentle on that boy, he would have pressed on like the weakling predator he is."

'Whoa. So harsh and not a tone of sympathy was detectable anywhere in her voice. This chick obviously meant business.' I evaluated, but something about her description of Damian had me puzzled. "What do you mean he is a weakling predator?" I questioned her. She then stood up with a perturbed glare. "He is exactly what it sounds like." She then pointed her rifle at me which made me jump as her open eye was seen through the scope and her finger was on the trigger before she continued. "He's a predator in the fact that he hunts after women. He chooses the finest prey hiding amidst the herd, stalks his selected prey, looking for the right opportunity to strike, and when he sees the opening, he takes the shot and BAM!" She shouted which made me jump with a small shriek as I had believed she had just pulled the trigger with the way she recoiled the gun back. She smiled and chuckled lowly after seeing my reaction which made me grip my fists that she'd pull such a low trick like that. "But he is also weak. He lacks a backbone in the face of danger or rejection. Also I doubt he is capable of even holding up those headphones to his ears let alone a woman. The poor, pathetic thing."

Now that was uncalled for. Anyone could see that Damian was a well-built guy but for her to make fun of not only the strength of his courage but his physical strength, I just wasn't gonna let that slide. "Hey that's a horrible thing to say. Anyone would have been surprised with the reflexes and speed you pulled off. Not to mention you basically threatened him so anyone would probably been scared witless. Besides everyone gets scared of something from time to time."

"You're wrong. Showing emotions as weak as fear, compassion, and hope are for those who can't do anything for themselves. If you remain cold, distant, and drive away the weaknesses of the soul, you'll become the strongest. That is what makes me different from everyone in this weak world. I have hunted a grizzly bear three times larger and heavier than the average bear, scoped out a hawk from 50 feet away, and even took the heart out of a humpback whale. I, the Ultimate Huntress, Melinda Jones will go down in history. Be sure to remember that. It will be the only useful information that will keep you safe around me." After that monologue she took her leave and I couldn't have been more disgusted.

'Has she really hunted endangered species? That's just unspeakable! I best avoid her otherwise my sanity might vanish and I do something I will deeply regret later on.' I reasoned with myself. I felt the madness that came from that conversation slowly sink away but I suddenly felt a hand touch my shoulder and my head jerked around, thinking it was Melinda again. "WHAT?!" I shouted at... him?

It was a guy with short ash brown hair under his white cowboy hat, a red plaid shirt with black leather-like patches on the shoulders of it, a yellow bandana tied around his neck, and a bolo tie under the collar. His left hand was hooked onto his brown belt with a big, copper belt buckle with a horse head on it. His black denim jeans were tucked into his brown cowboy boots and I saw a rope strapped to his side. I didn't even need to guess what his supposed talent was.

He pulled the hand that had touched my shoulder back when I yelled at him and then placed it on the other side of the belt buckle with a pout on his face. "Shoot sorry. Just wanna make sure you were okay. Sheesh you city folk have more venom in your bite than a rattlesnake that was born with one too many fangs." He grumbled his Western accent as heavy as it could be. His amber eyes looked away to avoid making eye contact with me.

I sighed with regret and turned to face him fully. "Hey listen I'm sorry. I was just a little on edge and you just approached me at the wrong time. I didn't mean to yell at you." The cowboy simply blinked at me. "Is that a bluff, or did you mean it for real play?" He asked. I couldn't help but look at him like he was delusional since I didn't understand a single word he said.

He noticed this and face palmed himself. "Whoops! Sorry partner. I forget I'm not at my ranch in Texas anymore so you city peeps have a hard time understand my speech patterns. What I said was basically, 'Are you serious?'" He corrected himself.

"Oh! Okay got it! Anyways yeah unfortunately. I just finished talking to Melinda and she kinda put me on edge." I confessed and he looked at me surprised. "You actually spoke to her? Shoot I'd rather take that gun of hers and blown my brain out then waste any time on that harlot." That didn't exactly make me feel better as my eyes rolled. "You don't have to tell me that."

He smiled as he stretched his arms out. "Whelp! That's enough 'bout that. We haven't even introduced ourselves properly yet. M' name's Willie Sadler and I know it's as obvious as a single stallion hiding in a herd of bulls but the Ultimate Cowboy is my official title 'round these parts!" He greeted me with a tip of his hat. He then leaned forward earnestly and with interest in his eye. "So partner, what's yer name?"

That had taken me by surprise. Basically everyone here knew who I was. Even if they weren't a fan I knew those I talked to all knew me in some way. "Wait you don't know?" Willie straightened himself up and put his hand on his chin. "I don't recall ever meeting you before in my life." I shook my head. "No that's not what I mean. I mean I'm the Ultimate Actor here, Kai Brugger? Been in lots of movies, TV shows, games, stuff like that."

"Oh! That's it! You're one them famous celebrities! To be honest I don't know really anyone other than the ones that starred in my favorite movie "Old Yeller". Besides that we use our TV to watch the news for tornados and other weather reports. I spend too much time on the ranch for any of the stuff you city folk use on a daily basis." Willie replied. To be honest I should have seen that coming. Of course someone who lives on a secluded ranch in Texas wouldn't be familiar with how things run in the big city. So I decided to try and talk about something that would be easy for him to discuss and me to understand. "So what make you the Ultimate Cowboy? Like what makes you different from any other cowboy?" I asked quizzically.

He smiled at that as he placed his fists on his hips like he was Superman. "Well Kai, let me tell you. I once took care of the entire ranch while my parents went to help out at the neighbor's place twenty-five miles away." 'That's their closest neighbor?' I thought in shock as he continued. "I milked thirty-five gallons out of our ten milking cows, sheered twenty-three sheep, tended to all the crops 'n fields that are ten acres wide, patched a hole in the farmhouse roof, and herded over fifty cows from the fields to the farmhouse all by myself in that one day. Not to mention I can shoot multiple targets in quick succession within three seconds. My current record is eleven. I also lassoed a greased pig in 2.8 seconds, took first place in every event in the rodeo, and once I even hog-tied a rattlesnake which people have claimed to be impossible until I proved 'em wrong." He boasted which to be fair it sounded like he had every right to do so. These feats certainly would make him the Ultimate Cowboy.

"You really did all that on your own?" I asked in amazement. He confirmed it with a firm nod. "Sure did, partner! My parents know they can trust me to git everything done if I'm left by myself. Even went to help the neighbors too. Despite me being an only child I proved time and time again I can take care of myself."

"Oh wait, you don't have any siblings? Well I mean I don't either but doesn't it get lonely if you are left alone?" I asked concern showing in my tone. "Nah, I always got the animals and my parents aren't always gone. My pa is super strong and my ma can actually handle herself too! But I have to keep an eye on her for her own sake, you know what I mean."

That didn't sound good with the way he said he had to watch out for his mom. "Oh I'm sorry. Did she suffer a somewhat crippling injury years ago?" I asked. He then raised his eyebrow at me. "I'm sorry? She has never broken anything in her life." I looked at him confused. "Well then does she get sick easily?" He then leaned forward looking even more flustered. "Boy, what are you saying? Ma's got the greatest immune system and I inherited that from her. She is as they say fit as a fiddle." I groaned as I threw my hands up in defeat. "Then why do you have to watch out for her if she is fine?"

Willie blinked. "Ain't it obvious? It's because she's a girl." My eyes widened almost as much as my jaw that dropped open. If a fly buzzed into my mouth it would just fly out one of my ears. "Are you serious?" It was all I could find myself muttering to him. "Of course. It's scientifically proven that men are more capable at being physically active than women. Besides my pa always told me to watch out for her if he wasn't nearby to watch her himself. She always insists she is capable of keeping up with us and Pa tells her that we know but Pa told me to just be careful in case she does slip up and fall behind."

I was dumbfounded by this revelation. 'So his dad basically is living a lie to his wife and telling his son that women are not as capable as men?! He won't last a day in here if any of the girls were to hear him talk like that.' I couldn't help but conclude this thought as Willie smiled like his sexist comments meant nothing.

Willie noticed something coming up to us from the side and gasped in disgust. "What in tarnation is that?!" He hollered. I looked over to see what he saw and I couldn't help but cringe myself.

* * *

 _This is the first half of the intro to Chapter 1! The next half will introduce the rest of the cast and introduce them to their new lives. See you all soon! Puhuhuhuhu!_


	3. Day 1 Part 2 & The Ceremony Begins!

Willie noticed something coming up to us from the side and gasped in disgust. "What in tarnation is that?!" He hollered. I looked over to see what he saw and I couldn't help but cringe myself.

It was a tan-skinned girl who actually had a neon blue hair color with her long hair that not only draped down the back of her neck but also was hanging over the left side of her cheek. What I saw stand out above even the hair was the tattoos that could be seen anywhere that her skin was visible except on her face and the front of her neck; Which was the only place I could actually make out her skin color. She wore a purple sports bra, black workout shorts, and brown Lauren Ralph flat sandals. Besides that she had piercings on her left eyebrow, right nostril, bellybutton, and four in each ear. Her gray eyes stared blankly at us as she approached.

"That thing ain't human! I ain't sticking around here with it stalking closer to us! See ya partner!" Willie shouted as he bolted away. I felt like he had the right idea as I turned to go but I suddenly heard her call out to me. "Hold it!" I froze in place as she walked up to me. I thought she was gonna do something terrible but I soon noticed that she simply walked around me her hand to her chin as she hummed lightly. 'Is she… observing me?" I wondered as my gaze followed her movements. She then walked in front and examined my face, paying especially close attention to my eyes.

"So which do you prefer more, Dick Van Dyke or Julie Andrews?" She randomly asked me. "Why?" I asked her and she shrugged and responded with, "Because they're your idol actor and actress, are they not?" That took me off guard! 'How did she know those two were my idols? Did she get that info from the hacker guy?' I worried.

"No I didn't get that from Paul. I got it from you right now. You look like the actor who loves singing from the way you take deep breaths and let it out slowly so I figured that you must have watched "The Sound of Music", "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang", and "Mary Poppins", which that one had both of them, a lot." She answered. 'Now she's reading my mind and knowing the musicals I always watched?! She's like a witch or something.' I panicked as I saw her face grow more annoyed.

"Well?" She asked impatiently. Guess she was still waiting for an answer. "Uh well if I had to choose I guess Julie Andrews since I tended to watch more of her movies." She nodded. "Good." Then she bent down and unlatched a suitcase I didn't even realize she had and suddenly I saw he pull a strange needle like gun out and attached a small bottle of black ink to it. "Okay where would you like? Don't worry if you want it somewhere private I'm not afraid to do it on your butt for example. Trust me I've done worse. Also the pain will be outrageous but worth it."

I backed away from her when she approached me with that thing pointed at me. "Hey hold on a second! What are you doing?!" She held her free hand out to the side in a questioning matter. "What does it look like? I'm giving you a tattoo of Julie Andrews." My eyes widened. "Wait I don't want a tattoo!"

Her arms folded as her foot tapped in annoyance. "Then why did you answer my question?" I looked at her perturbed. "I just thought you wanted to know which one I liked better! I didn't know you were referring to a tattoo!" She sighed as she took out the ink bottle and placed everything back. "Well it should have been obvious what I was asking. What would you expect from the Ultimate Tattoo Artist?"

"Oh so that's your talent?" I asked. She sighed. "Yes. I go by Ollie Peralta and next time, be more considerate of others before you decide to leave a person who is only trying to help you high and dry." She grumbled as she picked up her suitcase and walked off. I couldn't help the mixed feeling I felt towards her. She was scary in many ways but she was just doing what she did best and I rejected her pretty harshly. I decided to try and find someone else to get my mind off that.

I soon spotted another guy leaning against the stage with a magnifying glass in one hand as he looked at some sort of weirdly shaped rock. His tan attire seemed similar to Melinda's but his looked more like an explorer than a hunter, with a long sleeved button up, vest with like twenty pockets, cargo pants, and knee-high boots. He had a stubble, red beard and curly red hair prodding out from underneath his dome-shaped hat. I could see his enlarged hazel eye through the magnifying glass as well as his round, thin-framed, brown glasses before I saw that eye dart to me. I assumed he must have seen me coming up through the glass. He raised his head up at me with a smile and waved.

"Hi there! Nice to finally meet you, Kai!" He called out as I approached. I smiled as I stopped next to him. "I shouldn't be surprised that you know me."

He chuckled as he pointed at me. "Who doesn't?" Immediately I was gonna bring up Willie but I figured it would be best if I didn't. "Well let me introduce myself to you. I'm the Ultimate Paleontologist, Thomas Fenster but you can just call me Tommy." Tommy smiled through his introduction. "That's cool! So you study rocks and minerals right?"

Tommy's smile vanished as he looked at me with a glare in his eye and a pout on his lips. "That's a Geologist. Why would you think I'm one of them?" He asked taking obvious offense to that.

I gulped nervously as I looked down. "I'm sorry but I thought you were just examining that strange rock in your hand." He then looked even more offended as his jaw fell down. "This. Is. No. Rock!" He shouted as he shoved it in my face. "Look at it and tell me again if you think it's a rock! Do. Not. Touch it." He growled at me and I did as he demanded. I closely looked at it and noticed it was strangely hooked and thick like a giant cat claw. Once I put that thought to mind it suddenly clicked together. "Is that a fossil?" I questioned curiously.

He smiled with a nod as he backed off. "Yep! I specialize in digging up and researching dinosaur fossils. Been fascinated with them ever since I was 5 and got my start at a kiddy play pen at the National History Museum in Arizona when I was 7."

"You started at a kiddy play pen? Did you just keep practicing there and then get so good at it you actually began helping a team find fossils?" I asked.

He smiled but shook his head. "Nope, I mean I was put there while my family went into the museum but I left since it was basically a giant sandbox with nothing but kid toys and plastic fakes. But I wanted the real thing so I walked outside on my own and began digging at a random spot."

"The history curator and my family of course freaked out once they realized I wasn't there. They would have called the cops if someone didn't spot me digging a hole in the grass. They rushed out to scold me for running off and damaging the museum's property but as soon as I showed them this claw here that I found they stopped and soon an entire team of paleontologists, who worked for the museum, showed up and began excavating the spot I was digging. Soon enough the found an entire skeleton of a dinosaur that hadn't even been discovered by that point! I got to name it and they let me keep the talon I found as a reminder of what I did. I quickly joined that team at the museum once I turned 12 and I joined them on expeditions around the world, helping them find fossil after fossil."

"Wow, that's amazing. How did you manage to find them especially the one outside the museum on your first go?" I asked, astounded by his story. He shrugged. "Well I didn't. I just chose random spots and got lucky. I always say that if your intuition is so overwhelming on something then it must be right. It just felt right to be digging at that spot and so I trusted my intuition and every time it has never let me down."

"That's right! That's all it takes is the belief in yourself that make the seemingly impossible possible! What a truly inspirational tale!" A high pitched shouted came from behind me that made me jump away from it as I saw a different girl standing there with her fists held up in a confident matter.

This one looked very professional with her white hair done up in a bun which also had a pink stripe, with all types of make-up, like golden eye shadow, red lipstick, foundation, mascara, eye liner, and blush, visible on her face but not overdone. It was just perfect. She wore a yellow blouse with a white and green striped, tight-fitting skirt that clung around her knees and brown crown vintage sandals.

"Um… yeah I guess so." Tommy said with a shrug.

She suddenly took a step forward that was more of a stomp and pointed at him like she was the Ace Attorney. "NO! No guessing!" We both stepped back in surprise from that as her black eyes were narrowed at us. "If you just guess something you'll never get anything accomplished. Say "I know it and I can"!" She shouted and the two of us found ourselves straighten up like military soldiers and shouted in unison, "I know it and I can!" She soon straightened herself out like a teacher and smiled with a tilt of her head. "Good. Now just repeat that to yourself whenever you think like that and I promise your mindset will improve dramatically."

We looked at each other then back to her before Tommy stated, "And with that said I am now walking away from this conversation. Good luck, Kai." With that said he turned and walked away. "Don't walk away from your problems Tommy! Confront them!" She shouted to him but stayed in front of me.

She smiled at me as I gave her a weak smile back. "So nice to meet the talented actor who broke so many expectations with you going above and beyond even the daring sun! Kai Brugger, I must say it is an honor to meet such an inspiring young man." I felt myself blushing at her words and rubbed my neck awkwardly. "Aren't we basically the same age? Also I don't think I'm _that_ big of an inspiration."

She looked to me with a serious expression now plastering her face. "That's not true! You are! You just probably haven't been told enough and those people who haven't should be ashamed. The messages your movies provide for people has helped people! I reference them all the time and people have always found comfort in the characters and stories you portray."

I couldn't help but smile. Her words also seemed to lift me up off my feet and it felt great! "Say how do you do that?" I asked. She tilted her head. "How do I do what?"

"Oh sorry, I should have been clearer. How do you make people feel so good about themselves? I mean you've barely said much and I already feel pride swelling in me if you can believe it." I confessed. She giggled. "Oh I know, I can tell with the way your body's posture went more upright."

I shook my head in disbelief. "Just who are you?"

She then walked forward and handed me a business card. "I am Helen Kibby. I am the Ultimate Motivational Speaker and I am here to push you forward!" That saying was also on the card she handed me so I assumed it was her catchphrase. This one was impressive. She knew exactly what to say to someone and they would feel better about themselves in an instant.

"It's no surprise. You words are so direct and powerful! How do you do it?" I asked her, intrigued with what she would most likely tell me. "It's nothing really. I just assess the situation of the person through their actions or words and I help inspire them and bring them understanding through the words I relay to them. Do you remember that gay rights movement a couple months back? You know the one where thousands of Americans, in certain states that don't allow gay marriage and other rights, rallied together at the same time and peacefully protested for their rights?"

I blinked in shock as I stared at her. "No you mean…" I couldn't even finish my sentence but she knew what I was gonna ask anyways. "Yes. I was the one who rallied them together and gave that speech that gave them the courage to come forward and protest to the government without violence. The result ended with half of those states allowing those rights to gay couples." I had no idea the one who did that was a high school student like me!

"That's insane! I never would have thought you would help them out like that!" I said in shock. She chuckled at my eagerness of the topic and nodded. "Of course I would. A true motivational speaker does not discriminate in any way, whether it's sexuality, ethnicity, background history, sex, or even age. I help anyone that needs my aid and I am always making myself available to everyone."

What an inspiration! If anything I was just an insect compared to how big she was when it came to inspiring people. I couldn't help but feel extra lucky to be attending now despite all the weirdos and crazy people I've met so far. She smiled to me and then told me to run along and make more friends. Apparently she watched my interview on Good Morning America and was inspired by my courage so she didn't want to keep me rooted to her when I still had a few more students to meet.

I wondered if the next one would be as fantastic as her. It wasn't. As Helen and I parted ways, I suddenly saw a tan guy with blue eyes in a Hawaiian themed swim trucks and green flip-flops come straight at me down the slight hill the isles of the seats made riding atop a white surfboard with a blue border around the entire board. His dirty blonde hair that reached the top if his neck flowed behind him, well for as much as it could under an orange beanie with a horizontal green stripe, as he 'surfed' right at me. I screamed as I jumped out of the way in the nick of time as his board collided with the side of the stage and he went flying up with a back flip and somehow managing to land on his feet near the edge of the stage, his back to the seats.

"And Marcel Lawson sticks the landing!" He shouted triumphantly as he turned around only to find he stepped on air and ended up falling and face planting onto his surfboard with his legs arching back and nearly touching his head before they fell back so he was now lying on his stomach. I cringed as I saw all that unfold as I quickly ran over to him. "Hey are you okay?"

He slowly pushed himself up until he was sitting Indian-style holding his head. "Whoa. What a rush. So that's what it's like to surf indoors! Strange it was way bumpier on the ground than on the water. And they say the floors are supposed to be perfectly flat! Hah guess I just proved them all wrong!" He laughed.

'Is this guy for real? I know people joke about surfer dudes being stupid and high but this guy seems even worse! Not to mention he even sounds like one!' I thought as he slowly stood up. I assumed his vision was clearing up because once he stopped swaying to and fro like he was on a boat his eyes widened when they focused on me. "HOLY SHIT! KAI BRUGGER IS HERE! Dude! Please sign my surfboard, dude! All my homies in Hawaii are gonna flip out! They're gonna be all like WHAT and then they'll be surfing and the wave will be all like BAM and they'll be like WHOA WE JUST GOT HIT BY A WAVE OF MARCEL BEING TOO COOL WITH HIS AUTOGRAPHED BOARD, right?"

I felt a wave of stupidity just hit me from hearing that alone! Surely no one was that dumb but I guess this guy proved me wrong. I didn't want to hear another horrible surfer analogy so I quickly asked him a question. "So your name is Marcel Lawson and you're the Ultimate Surfer right?" His blue eyes widened at me in shock. "WHAT? Dude, how'd you know?" I look at him blankly before looking down at the board and back up. He followed my gaze and chuckled with a blush on his cheeks. "Oh yeah right. My swim trunks totally give it away."

Was it bad that I wanted to punch this guy? "So what makes you the Ultimate Surfer?" I asked him for two reasons. One: I wanted nothing more than to find a way to either shut him up or walk away and 2: I was curious how someone as 'bright' as him got accepted to this prestigious school. He smiled and nodded at me. "Aww man it was righteous! I totally was surfing with my bros and we were hanging ten and partying but then suddenly, we got word that a tidal wave was coming and all my bros freaked out and got back to shore. But me? I went even further out in the ocean and I rode that wave! I rode it for like a full five minutes before the wave crashed down and destroyed my buddie's beach house. It was crazy man and that's why I am the Ultimate Surfer!"

'Okay I can understand him being here better. The fact he surfed on a tidal wave is unbelievable but the only reason I believe it is because I think someone like him _would_ be stupid enough to risk his life just to surf on a dangerous natural disaster. Also he wouldn't be here if he hadn't done that.' I thought but he pulled me out of my thoughts when he shoved his board at my face.

"So? Will you sign my board man? Pleeeease?" Marcel begged with the biggest puppy dog eyes I had ever seen on a supposedly grown man. I just wanted this guy to leave before I caught whatever braindead disease he had. I smirked as I thought up of a lie and with my acting skills I knew he wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

"Of course. Here let me just grab the marker I always keep on me for this situation." I reached into my empty pocket and pretended to panic when I didn't feel the marker. "Oh no! I guess I forgot it. Hey Marcel, if you find me a marker I will gladly sign your board for you." His eyes beamed as he began bouncing excitedly in place. "Don't worry Mr. Kai, I will get that marker!" With the he bolted off and I let out the biggest sigh of relief ever.

Before I turned to find someone else I saw Marcel run up to a girl who had a marker in her hand. "Oh no." I groaned as I knew what would happen and I groggily made my way over to hopefully make Marcel leave the girl alone.

The girl looked dark and mysterious with her short and dark purple hair and a red hair band that pushed the front of her hair into a small bump. She wore heavy eye liner and shadowing around her eyes and black lipstick to make her look even creepier despite having bright green eyes. She wore a red velvet dress that had a slit in the bottom that exposed her leg kind of like Jessica Rabbit but her dress wasn't glittery but the material was like the stage's main curtains where if the lighting was just right the red can look like it has black on it too making her look even scarier than the girl with the dragon tattoo. At that point there was a sneeze somewhere in the auditorium. I looked over and saw Ollie sniffling and quickly pretended that analogy wasn't made. She also wore black pointed-toe t-strap high heels and looked busy drawing on a round piece of paper as Marcel prodded at her for the marker.

"Come on man! You don't understand I need that marker! Please!" Marcel whined and flailed around like a small child throwing a tantrum. "No. Your presence annoys me. Be gone or I will force you to leave." The girl said her voice coming off as brash. Before I could jump in Marcel tried snatching the marker away but the girl was quicker (Or in this case smarter most likely) and tucked it away between her breasts. She then smiled, "I'll tell you what. If you can look at this spiral and not fall asleep I will let you borrow the marker." With that said she spun the circle she was drawing on just a second ago.

Marcel laughed at her challenge. "You are on!" He shouted as he looked at the spiral, his eyes following the rotisserie movement. "This is gonna be to…" The out of nowhere his head dropped down as he began snoring with drool immediately beginning to drip from his open mouth. She then sat up with a smirk. "Too easy." She finished Marcel's statement as she placed her thumb and middle finger in a snapping position. "Now when you awaken you will fall madly in love with the first person you see and zip after them until you confess your love with them in your arms."

She then snapped and Marcel snorted awake. He wiped the drool off his lip as his groggy eyes slowly opened. He was now looking towards the back of the auditorium directly in front of him and I followed his view to see Damian and Sienna talking in the back. Damian had his hand on the wall Sienna rested against as she seemed to press herself away. Looks like Damian was at it again already and he just had to go for the terribly shy one of all else. Suddenly Marcel bolted off with a dust cloud formed around his feet as he dashed towards the two. They both saw him running at them with his arms extended and shouting, "My love!" Sienna and Damian both immediately turned tail and ran for the hills with Marcel running closer to them. The figure skater was screaming in panic and Damian was shouting at Marcel to back off and let him have his moment.

I couldn't believe that worked and apparently so couldn't she. "Wow. Both old yet still very effective." She shrugged, losing interest in that moment, as she tossed the spiral away in a random direction that ended up flying back and hitting the back of my head. You wouldn't expect a paper circle to do as much damage as a baseball but it sure felt like it.

"Oops, my apologies. So the famous Kai Brugger has graced me with his exuberant presence after all." She gleamed smiling sweetly at me. I looked to her confused. "And why does that surprise you? We are classmates after all." I told her. She simply shrugged as she twirled a strand of her hair around her finger. I shook my head, not wanting to delve into whatever she was referring to and asked the question I had been asking most everyone so far. "So tell me who you are and what your talent is even though I have a good guess what it is you do."

She grinned. "Well as you obviously know I'm the Ultimate Hypnotist and my given name is Evelyn Sanford. Charmed I'm sure." She then held her hand out to me with her wrist pointed up. I looked at the hand in shock. 'Does she want me to kiss her hand?' I wondered. It wasn't like I hadn't kissed another girl's hand before but it was just always as one of my characters, never in real life. But all I could do was quietly sigh and cup the underside of her hand before I leaned down and lightly pecked her knuckles.

Her grin then looked mischievous as she retracted her hand. "Such a gentleman you are. You truly are the Ultimate Actor." She cooed.

I blinked at her. "Wait you think I'm faking right now?" All she did was tilt her head to the side and rested it on her palm. "This is California. There is never a true gentleman that would kiss a lady's hand unless they were in Paris or someplace refined."

"You were the one who offered your hand in the first place. I simply did it to be nice." I retorted. She then looked like she was giving such obviously fake puppy eyes and pouted, lower lip at me. "Oh, so you're saying you wouldn't have if I didn't?"

"No, well I mean maybe… I-I dunno!" I shouted growing flustered. 'This girl is tricky. She's making me eat my own words and spit them out completely different.' I sighed in defeat and looked to her. "How about we change the topic? What makes you so Ultimate?"

She sighed in boredom, probably because of the fact that I gave up so easily and ruined the fun she was having. "Fine, you wanna make small talk? I can provide that. I learned my hypnotic charms were a natural talent of mine since I was very young. I trained myself and dabbled in what most would call Dark Arts and I quickly perfected my technique. I then start my business where people can come be hypnotized just for the fun of it or for help. I even got some sponsors to really get my rise in the world."

"Help? How does hypnotism help someone?" I asked confused. She smiled as her gaze went starry-eyed, like she was remembering a fond memory. "I remember this one client who had begged for my help. You see this man had a major crush on one of his co-workers and he was too afraid to approach him." I blinked in surprise when I did a double take on what she said. She noticed it and grinned, following up with, "Yes the man was deeply in love with another man. That's why he was scared to approach him since he had no idea of the man's past relationships and how he would react. So he came to me, I placed him under my hypnotic suggestion so that when he saw this man he would approach him and ask him out. Two months later I get a wedding invitation from the man. I have to say for two men to be standing at the altar, it was rather cute seeing them together."

'Who would have thought something that can mess with your head or take away your free will could be so helpful? I sure never would have thought of that.' I concluded with a small smile. "However," She continued, "I did notice the man was still under my hypnotism since my methods seem to have rather unusual side effects."

I looked down at her and blinked in shock. "Hypnotism can have side effects?" She shrugged at me. "Nothing bad like prescription medicines have with vomiting, diarrhea, or death, I mean more so physical things like I found that man would shiver as if he was standing in the snow with no shoes on. Naturally I broke the suggestion on him at the wedding when I noticed it. Would you like to try it? I'll charge it for free! On the house today and just for you!" She offered like a TV salesperson as she pulled out a green jewel pendant out from her bosom.

"Uh… I don't think it's for me but I do appreciate the offer." I said rather forcefully. She looked vexed at my refusal but simply shrugged. "Very well." That was all she said before placing it back.

Suddenly I saw Marcel walking back as I saw the one he chased after. Poor Sienna. She tried so hard to avoid conflict and the others and yet she got caught up in this whole mess as she walked a little ways behind Marcel. …What? You thought it was Sienna that Marcel was trying to hug? Well look again! Damian looked very displeased as he was carried over, his back tightly pressed to Marcel's chest and his arms pinned to his sides as he stopped in front of Evelyn.

I looked at Marcel and noticed his eye was twitching madly. It must be because of the hypnotic task of being a psycho-crazed love boy that made him look like a kooky dingbat. I then barely heard Marcel whisper into Damian's ear, "I love you." Suddenly Marcel's eyes widened as he dropped Damian who recoiled in pain from landing on his butt so hard. "What the heck? What just happened?"

"You won the bet. You didn't fall asleep when I spun the spiral. The marker is yours to use." Evelyn told him and I couldn't believe it! She just lied to him and is now gonna force me to sign his stupid board. What was her deal? "Really? AWESOME! Give it!" He shouted sticking his hand out. She shrugged as she reached between her breasts and brought it out. "Fine but I hope you don't mind the germs." She said warningly. Marcel dropped his head to the side with a puzzled look. "What?" She then silently gasped with her fingertips lightly covering her mouth. "You don't know. Why dear boy, it is common knowledge that beautiful vixens like me carry a deadly disease to men called… the cooties!" She replied in an eerie, haunting voice. His eyes widened as he retreated his hand before the marker touched him. "NO WAY! I'll find another one!" With that he bolted off also dodging out of the way when he nearly ran into and touched Sienna, who cowered down in fear of him running her down.

'I guess Evelyn has made him think all girls have cooties and that it's deadly. Then what was the point of the hypnotism if that's all she had to do to get rid of him? All I can say is that chick is a major troublemaker despite the fact she helps others.' I thought, finishing my evaluation of her.

I decided I had enough 'fun' with the hypnotist and quickly walked away. I heard her call out my name and I looked back but continued to walk. She simply waved goodbye to me and not saying anything of actual importance like I thought she would. But as soon as I turned my head back to look where I was going, I instantly bumped into someone's back much faster and harder than I anticipated and quickly lost my balance. I somewhat slid back on my butt and grunted from the quick shock of pain that radiated from my tailbone and slowly rubbed the slight pain away. 'Did she distract me on purpose so I would crash into someone? She's a rebel!' I thought angrily. But before I could process anything else I saw an outstretched hand close to my face. "Hey are you okay?" I heard the soothing voice asked with great concern.

I looked up to see the guy I ran into. This guy looked like the most average guy here. He wore a tight, red V-neck t-shirt underneath a white and red assassin style hoodie, dark blue denims that had dried dirt on the knees, a black belt with a silver, circular buckle, and white sneakers with red highlights that looked brand new. His blonde hair was normal length but combed forward into a spiked front hairstyle and I noticed a lot more freckles peppering his cheeks and the backs of his arms than Brenda but not overwhelming his white skin. I also noticed his eyes were very unique considering he had a most unnatural color that made them look too much like sea green. In all honesty he did look like a modern version of Ezio Auditore from Assassin's Creed.

He looked down at me with a curious tilt of his head. "Hey are you okay?" He repeated a bit louder when I didn't respond the first time. I quickly felt stupid for not responding for so long as I grabbed his hand. "Y-Yeah thanks." With that he pulled me up to my feet as our hands quickly dropped to our sides. I noticed that my vest had shifted when I fell so I readjusted it but then I heard the guy gasp and I looked back up to see his expression of surprise. "Oh my God, you're Kai Brugger! Oh man it such an honor to actually meet you!" He shouted in excitement as he bowed to me but quickly straightened himself. "No wait, you're not Japanese. That was probably very racist of me. I should be more considerate. Um…"

I couldn't help but chuckle. 'I guess he gets just as flustered as me though in his case he is meeting what I could only assume is one of his favorite actors.' I thought. I guess he noticed my chuckle and scratched his head nervously. "Heh, sorry. I just didn't think I'd actually get the chance to meet you let alone talk to you so I didn't really give much thought to how I'd greet you."

"Hey don't worry about it! Just greet me like you would with a stranger on the street." With that I held my hand out to him. At first he looked surprised but quickly smiled as he gripped mine and we shook hands. His handshake was firm but also gentle showing he has probably done this kind of thing plenty times before or maybe he just didn't want to embarrass himself in front of me again. I smiled as I greeted him to help him talk to me like a normal guy. "Hello, I am Kai Brugger, the Ultimate Actor. It is very nice to meet you."

"Great to meet you, Kai! I am Luca Archer and I'm known as the Ultimate Traceur! I'm very happy to be here!" Luca introduced himself as I looked at him curiously. "Ultimate Traceur? So your specialty is drawing?" I asked.

He looked at me with surprise but soon our hands released each other and he couldn't help but laugh. I looked at him bewildered and he saw this as he took deep breaths to calm himself down. "You don't know what a traceur is, do you?" He questioned which that would already answer his question since apparently I got the wrong kind of tracer. I looked down, rubbing my arm embarrassed. "I guess not. Sorry, I hope I didn't offend you."

He walked up and patted my shoulder. "No harm done, man. It's surprising how few people actually know the term so it's not uncommon. A traceur is someone who takes part in parkour. You can think of it as… a stunt double."

I looked at him in surprise. "Oh! I had no idea there was a name for those people! That's cool! So then what makes you so Ultimate?" I asked a bit inquiring. His gaze left mine for a bit. "Too be honest I'm not even sure. I mean I've done parkour for such a long time that I joined up a bunch of my buddies a number of years back and even started a YouTube channel. It quickly grew into a big channel that I called 'Traceur Archer', which I know is not the cleverest of names but I thought it worked since it rhymed."

"Hey I think it works. I believe short and rhymes work for channels like those. Anyways how big is it?" I asked, probably sounding more meddlesome then before. "Oh well, it's not nearly as big as the gaming channels but last I checked I'd say it was around… 1.5 million subscribers?" If my eyes could open any wider than they were now they'd be baseballs. "What?! Dude, that's huge! That is really huge! Why are you making it not sound like a big deal? What was the video that got you so many subscribers?!" Okay I am now positive I was being unorthodox with my prying.

He seemed a bit rushed by the onslaught of questions but answered the most pertinent one that was on my mind. "Well I don't remember precisely which video got me noticed by a lot of people but if I were to guess… I'd say it was when I scaled up nearly three-fourths of the Eiffel Tower maybe."

Scratch the baseball analogy, my eyes would be flying saucers! "You climbed up the Eiffel Tower!?" He chuckled nervously at my sudden outburst. "Well yeah I mean it wasn't really anything impressive. Not long after the video went up another traceur who was much older and experienced managed to climb even higher than I did as he almost reached the top." I couldn't believe what I was hearing. 'This guy is way too humble for his own good! Why would he make his outstanding achievements sound so miniscule?' I couldn't help but be astonished by Luca's belittling attitude towards himself.

"Luca, I gotta ask. Why…" But before I could say anything, there was a big crashing sound that came from the middle of the auditorium and suddenly a girl cried out. "Help! The hamsters are getting away!" Luca looked at me and then got this determined look in his eyes as he nodded to me then took off towards the girl. He leaped up on the top of the seat and bounded along each row of seats, jumping from one seat to the next before he jumped off, landing next to her and the scattered hamsters. He quickly scooped up a nearby hamster that didn't even get the chance to react while the girl managed to catch one that ran around frantically near the cage. I watched him in amazement and thought Luca not only looked like Ezio, he _was_ Ezio. Just minus the killing and assassination part.

I quickly ran up and saw a pretty fat hamster running at me. I quickly went for it but it quickly dodged when it saw me coming at it. I then felt my reflexes kick in as I managed to predict where it would dodge to and snatched it up. It was slightly panicking from the sudden hand grabbing it but quickly settled down as I walked over and saw Luca putting the one he caught in the big cage the girl had. I could see there were now two hamsters in there and I had the third one. As I approached I also noticed the girl.

She was kneeling on the ground next to the hamster cage, wearing a pink scrub uniform and a white medical jacket on top. Her beautiful strawberry blonde hair was quite long with slight curls in them as it all hung down freely except her bangs were cut short and parted at the middle. Her silver eyes were very captivating and her tan skin seemed to glow in the light as she smiled at Luca and me when I got close enough. "Thank you." She whispered to us wiping a tear away.

Luca looked a bit panicked at that. "Hey are you crying? Did you get hurt?" She then giggled as she finished wiping her eyes. "No it's just I wasn't expecting such kindness for a klutz like me."

Luca looked he was gonna say something but a sudden squeak from behind the girl sounded as we managed to spot another hamster that had averted us all this time. "I got it." Luca quickly volunteered as he ran forward. The hamster quickly darted below the seats as he jumped over them and began the chase, leaving me and the girl alone with the two hamsters in the cage and the one in my hands.

I quickly put the big hamster back and looked up at the girl. She smiled at me and I smiled back. "Say why do you have these hamsters here?" I asked her. She looked down at the three and smiled. "It's because I love animals. After all being the Ultimate Veterinarian does mean that animals are my passion. Oh I'm Mikayla Weissberg by the way!"

"Oh I see. That's pretty cool! Are these your hamsters then?" I questioned. She shook her head as she picked up the cage and placed it in her lap. "My mother is also a veterinarian and she got called in to tend to a sick horse in Japan. After she was done and headed to the airport, Mother met this strange boy who asked for her help with his hamsters. They were sick and he couldn't seem to figure out why. She told him she was more suited for treating bigger animals but I was more than capable of taking care of them. So he allowed her to bring them home to me and I have just finished raising them back to health. Here's the funny thing about it. Apparently the boy already goes to Hope's Peak Academy in Japan as the Ultimate Breeder."

"That's pretty crazy. What are their names?" I quickly approached her and knelt down next to the cage as she pointed them out. "That's Sun-D, Maga-G, and Cham-P. The other one that boy is chasing is Jum-P. They are all very smart like scary smart." I couldn't help but blink plainly at her. "Those are… very unique names." I didn't even really hear the statement on their intelligence. I was just too stunned to hear those kinds of names for pets. She giggled at my comment. "That's what I told my mom but it wasn't hard for me to remember the names and remember which was which. For me knowing the animal is like knowing your children, the better you know them, the better you can help them and I want to help all the animals of the world."

'That's a big dream but as far as these Ultimates are concerned that pipe dream of hers is most likely going to be reality.' I thought as I looked to her. "Well I hope you do that! So are you better at helping small animals?"

"Nope! I actually can take care of animals of any size from the normal cat and dog to the mighty bull and horse. Once I even helped a sick whale get better! She was close to dying to but I got her healed up and raring to go!" She beamed.

'So she even tends to animals as big as whales? Best make sure she doesn't know about the whale heart Melinda has.' I thought to myself before I heard her continue. "So yeah I tend to help the smaller ones more but I will help any animal no matter the species! In fact…" She then brought out a small pocketbook. "I've got Hamlet tomorrow at 5 and then Noni at 7 before I get to Sammy at 8:30." She was now talking to herself now. It looks like she was very well organized and always kept herself busy with animals. Then suddenly I heard her say, "And this time I'm not gonna fall in Hamlet's dung."

"I'm sorry what?" I asked my head falling forward a bit. She looked up at me with a small hum before she realized what I asked and blushed. "Well I kinda have a bad tendency to trip over myself and sometimes I'll even land in something unpleasant. Hamlet, a stallion who is a regular client, always seems to have a pile of poop in his stable that I always fall into. But don't worry, I always get myself cleaned off before I head off to my next client." I couldn't help but feel sorry for her. Despite wanting to help all animals it seems like she just has the worst luck around them.

Well I guess that was everyone. I quickly thought back to everyone I met, what they were like, and what their talent was. There was Brenda Bates, who's bubbly and energetic and the Ultimate Collector, Paul Sharpe was the Ultimate Hacker who doesn't care for privacy, shy and unsocial Sienna Donnelly the Ultimate Figure Skater, Jayden Hutchinson who is strong, brave, gentle, and caring, the Ultimate Bodyguard, Shana O'Connor the Ultimate Miner who seems to never keep herself clean, Damian Eaves the Ultimate DJ level headed until he sees a girl, Melinda Jones the Ultimate Bitch, I mean Ultimate Huntress (Too), Willie Sadler the Ultimate Cowboy who shouldn't be allowed near girls just as much as Damian, Ollie Peralta the Ultimate Tattoo Artist who I don't think understands social cues, the intuitive and lucky Tommy Fenster the Ultimate Paleontologist, Helen Kibby the Ultimate Motivational Speaker with a big heart and helpful to everyone she meets, Marcel Lawson the Ultimate Surfer and Dumbass (Must I say more), Evelyn Sanford the Ultimate Hypnotist and a dangerous trickster, Luca Archer the Ultimate Traceur who seems too humble for his own good, and Mikayla Taylor the Ultimate Veterinarian who loves all animals but is a major klutz around them. I guess I should include myself in there too. Kai Brugger the Ultimate Actor and with that, this is the first American class to attend the prestigious school of Hope's Peak Academy ever!

After I went over everyone I met, we heard panting as Luca ran up with Jum-P in his hands. "This one was a clever one. He certainly gave me a great workout." He breathed heavily as he held him out to Mikayla. She laughed as she nuzzled Jum-P's cheek. "Alright Jum-P, it's time for you to go back in with your friends." She told him as she gently placed him inside and locked the door. Luca looked at her puzzled. "Jum-P?"

"It's a bit of a long story." Mikayla replied but before she could continue we heard someone shout my name. I cringed when I heard how retarded the voice sounded as I saw Marcel run up to me with a blue marker in hand. "Oh great, he actually found one." I groaned as he propped his board up against the nearby seats and held the marker out.

"Here you go Kai! I tried finding a marker when I just remembered I had one in my trunks this entire time." I was just about to grab the marker when I processed what he said and retreated my hand back swiftly. "What?! Dude!" He then chuckled and smiled before he replied. "Yeah man I know. I'm so stupid sometimes."

Then out of nowhere all the lights in the entire room shut off, masking us in complete darkness. "Hey! What's going on here!?" I heard one of the girls cry. From how shrill it sounded I could only guess that it was Sienna. Then I definitely know who shouted next as much as I wish I didn't. "Aw man! Turn on the lights. The Ultimate Actor can't sign my board like this, man!" "Alright who's the wise guy? I'll make them lick their own ass if they don't confess!" A girl screamed out. "I would not allow that!" A big husky voice sounded out.

"Everyone stop freaking out!" A girl shouted as we saw a light suddenly turn on. The light was fixated on me, Luca, Mikayla, and Marcel as it walked closer to us. We soon saw it was Shana and her miner hat's light was on. "Must you all cry when things get dark? It's not that bad."

Soon the others who followed the light started appearing as they got close. "You work underground for a living. Of course you'd be used to it." Brenda grumbled as she appeared alongside Jayden and Willie. Next Helen came into view with Melinda, Damian, and Ollie following close. "Don't worry everyone. I'm sure the breaker just blew out. The school will get it fixed in no time." Helen said confidently. "But I like the dark. It has comfort to it." Ollie retorted making a few of us look to her with weirded out expressions.

Next was Paul to show up and speak. "I wonder what's truly going on here." Then Tommy, "Huh? What do you mean by that?" Paul chuckled. "Isn't it obvious? The letter we each got when we showed up. Why did we all get letters?" Marcel raised his hand. "Oh it was so we would know where to go and to congratulate us for entering the school!" Paul shook his head with a devious smile. "If the school wanted to do that why wouldn't they simply have the teachers there to welcome us and direct us?" Everyone fell silent after that. Willie hummed. "It is strange to have the school open for us to enter yet we ain't seen anyone in this school besides the sixteen of us here." "But why would that be?" Mikayla asked.

"Puhuhuhuhu! You're gonna find out soon my students!" A voice suddenly rang out throughout the auditorium making us all gasp in surprise. "Welcome class to the opening ceremony! I can't wait for you all to meet me, your headmaster!" Out of nowhere I felt something and I couldn't help but shiver. I felt my knees buckle as I nearly fell forward. Luca noticed this in the small lighting we had and placed his hand on my shoulder in a worried manner. "Hey Kai, what's wrong?"

I found I couldn't say anything. I felt like I had been through this before. A high, cheery voice echoing through the darkness that left me with a sudden feeling of coldness, a feeling of dread, a feeling of fear, a feeling of… despair.

We all looked around frantically. Shana tried using her light to spot out the voice but couldn't find anything. Then when she turned and faced the group, a sudden black and white bear head appeared in the light. Shana and the rest of us screamed in fear as we jumped away. Sienna had accidentally run into Shana and knocked her back which made her helmet fly off her head and lose our lighting. But soon the house lights turned back on as we saw nothing there except the sixteen of us scattered back and around the spot where that thing had appeared.

"Sorry but I am over here!" The voice called out again. This time we could make out the chill-inducing voice coming from the stage as we all faced it while Shana grabbed her helmet, put it back on, and switched her light off. Suddenly we saw a weird but creepy looking bear pop up from behind the desk and landed on its rump on the desk's surface. I felt like if this were a horror movie the camera would pan down behind us and then zoom past to the stage and pop up when the bear had popped up only to follow it back down.

We all stared at it in bewilderment. Evelyn was the one to break the still air of silence. "What the hell is that bear?" Mikayla looked at the bear thoughtfully and confused. "Well it looks like some kind of half polar bear and black bear hybrid. Or maybe weirdly pattered panda?"

The red eye on it seemed to light up as it growled at us. "I am not a bear! I am not panda! I am not polar! And I am not… well I'm not gonna say that last one. Don't wanna offend… certain people." The bear seemed to be staring straight at Damian which Damian pouted at him. "You better watch yourself."

"Well I digress. I am not any of those bears. I am Monokuma!" He shouted with his hands on his rounded belly. We all looked at the bear stunned. Soon Willie looked to us. "Alright ya rich, city punks, which one of y'all is controlling that thing?" His gaze immediately went to me and Paul. "It's one of you two, isn't it?"

"It's not me!" I countered. "I may have access to studios but I can't hold onto any kind of equipment or props even for something like this."

Paul simply showed us his closed laptop in his hand. "If this thing isn't open I can't hack. Besides why would I hack into something if I don't know what its purpose is?"

"Sheesh! Will all of you just shut up?! Your bickering is giving me a huge migraine! You don't want your headmaster to get angry at you now, do you?" Monokuma asked us which we all looked surprised at. "Headmaster? That can't be true. The entire staff here should be humans not mechanical bears." Tommy shook his head.

"How many times must I say I am not a bear?! I am Monokuma!" He shouted again. "And as for the rest of the staff, I decided they just weren't cut out for handling degenerates like you so I… well let's just say I cut them down."

"Huh? You fired the entire school faculty?" Helen asked surprised. Monokuma just chuckled which put me even more on edge. "I cut them down, fired them, tossed them away, left them out to dry, no matter how you wanna say it, they're gone forever!"

I didn't like the way he said that. Something was setting an alarm off in my head but I couldn't quite remember what so I just stood there taking in all that was being said. "Well enough about that let's begin this ceremony! As you all know you will be living your lives in this academy during your stay here. As such I am inclined to tell you how long that will be."

"U-Um… won't that b-be until… th-the end of the sch-ool year…?" Sienna asked trembling lightly. Monokuma raised his hand up to her. "That's what they wanted you to think but do not worry. I will tell you the truth! Your school lives and the time you will remain here will last for about… for the rest of your lives!" We all cringed as we stared blankly at him.

"What do you mean by that?!" Luca shouted. "It's just as I said, from this point on you will all remain in this school until the day you die!" He hollered back.

Ollie glared at him. "There's no way I agreed to this. I'm leaving." With that she turned and began walking away. "Hold it! You can't just leave! The school's already been cut off from that horrible outside world and everyone out there too. You can't get out and no one can get in!" I couldn't believe that! 'That meant Terry can't get in here to get me or anyone else out? You've got to be shitting me!' I found myself screaming in my head.

"But it's not all bad! You can graduate to leave this place if ya wanna." Monokuma said. I felt like everyone's eyes lit up at that. "Really? How?! No matter what it is I will do it! I want out!" Damian shouted happily.

"Puhuhu! Are you sure? It's simple really. While you live here you are all responsible for maintaining the harmony of this school. But if one of you decided to disrupt that harmony then that person gets the chance to graduate! And what might that mean you wonder? Well simply put… You must kill one of your own comrades!" That light in our eyes quickly vaporized as we looked mortified at the delusional bear.

Jayden's face was lined purple as he lightly trembled. "W-What did you just say?! We have to kill to get out!? That is outrageous!" He shouted angrily. "Yeah what he said! I could never kill someone!" Damian yelled in agreement.

"That's too bad! That is the requirement! Wanna leave? Kill one of the simpletons next to you and you're golden!" Monokuma cooed. Brenda suddenly ran up and jumped onto the stage. "Listen whoever you are! I am not playing such a sick game! Who's controlling the bear on the other end?"

Luca stepped forward. "Brenda, I don't think that's a good idea." But she looked to him with a quick flick of her head. "I don't like to get angry but I am not gonna be told to do something as messed up as this. Help me hold this thing down and Paul can hack it and find out who is behind this." Monokuma yelped as he jumped off the desk and began waddling off, looking helpless. "Oh no you don't!" She shouted chasing after him.

I suddenly felt my nerves tense up as she reached out to grab him. I suddenly felt like something bad would happen but I wasn't the only one as a sudden force pushed past me and darted towards the two. Brenda easily ran up to Monokuma and bent down. "You're not getting away from us!" She shouted as she grabbed the top of the bear. Monokuma suddenly reeled his head back as the red eye lit up. "WRONG MOVE!" He screamed as the wall in front of her opened up.

Before she could react, a barrage of medieval looking weapons was launched out and flew at her but Jayden snatched her up. He bolted away from the flying weapons as they chased after him. Jayden quickly hopped over the desk, slid across the top, and grabbed the side which made its side get lifted up as Jayden landed on his knees with the desk now on its side as the weapons began piercing the desk turned makeshift shield. One javelin went straight through the middle and just stopped near Brenda's face as she yipped in horror. Her face drowned in purple as well as the rest of us when we saw how close not only Brenda but Jayden were to being skewered alive just now but the demonic bear just laughed.

"That was close! I would have punished myself if Jayden had gotten killed instead of or with Brenda." He chuckled. Brenda looked around the desk, mortified. "Wh-What the hell? You nearly killed me!" He looked at Brenda dumbfounded. "Well of course I would have. To attempt to harm your headmaster is a violation of the school rules."

"Wait we have rules?" Marcel asked surprised. "Of course! A school that doesn't have ground rules is like getting together with a lover but not telling them certain boundaries they might have. Do you know what kind of shenanigans can unfold from that situation?" Marcel looked thoughtful. "Well a lot could happen like…" Suddenly Monokuma jumped up into Marcel's face. "It was a rhetorical question!" He shouted in his face as Marcel screamed and fell back.

Soon Jayden and Brenda were back with the group with Brenda looking down before she glanced up at Jayden. "Listen, I'm sorry. I didn't know that…" But she was silenced by Jayden placing his hand on her shoulder. "It's not your fault. You only wished to help and I don't blame you." He replied comfortingly. She smiled small at him before Monokuma jumped back to the stage.

"Now then to ensure that you know these rules and don't forget, I've prepared each of you an e-Handbook! This nifty, little gadget has your name on it and will contain all the current rules I have set and any rules I enforce as the school life goes on. CATCH!" With that said, he began launching them at all of us. Most of us caught ours except Marcel got hit in the head with his after he got back up, Sienna ducked down in fear as it sailed over her but was caught and given to her by Luca (It amazed me how his reflexes were on point), and Mikayla's bounced around in her hand before she dropped it.

Evelyn growled as she threw her e-Handbook down. "I am not staying here any longer! I am calling my lawyer!" With that she pulled out her cell phone and flipped it open. I suddenly felt stupid that I forgot I had my smartphone on me. 'That's right! We can call our family and friends to help us! Terry, please answer!' I begged as I pulled out my phone as did everyone else.

But then out of nowhere, "CONFISCATED!" Monokuma shouted as he jumped past each of us lightning fast, snatching our phones away from us. "I decree that I can confiscate anything I see as a distraction or dangerous." "Hey give them back!" Tommy shouted. "No no no! That won't do at all! I can't have you ruin the fun by calling those you love."

Monokuma then gasped as he saw Paul's laptop in his lap. "Hand over the laptop!" Paul just looked up to Monokuma and glared. "Fine but first come take a look at what I'm doing." Monokuma quickly dropped our phones down a hole that appeared and closed on stage as he then made his way over. "Hmm?" I peeked over and saw that Paul was creating firewalls on his laptop. But then I heard Paul ask Monokuma something unimaginable. "Now just set the password to whatever you like and that will omit me from any form of outside contact and hacking anything inside the building. Surely this will be acceptable?"

Monokuma hummed thoughtfully as he giggled evilly. "I like you! You remind me so much of that one blonde, glasses freak that everyone knows about." He looked out to the reading audience before he took the laptop and faced it away before he typed with his rather big hands. Soon he handed it back to Paul and patted his shoulder. "Now that I know you won't mess with me or anything of importance here or contact someone out there for help, I will allow you to keep that to fulfill you hacking pleasures."

Paul sneered at him before standing up and walking away from him. "Stop saying such perverse things." We all looked at him in disbelief. "What's was that? Why did you let him do that?! We could have gotten away from here!" I shouted at him. He didn't look back as he answered. "I do not care. This killing game will be boring but I can't afford to lose my laptop. After all I'll need something to keep me entertained. Oh by the way I won't be needing this." He reached into his pocket and threw back his cell phone which Monokuma bounced up and caught. "CONFISCATED!" He shouted as he fell back down.

"Now with that settled I believe we are now officially done with the opening ceremony! Please take this time and explore the school! Your luggage has already been taken to your rooms and anything I deemed unsafe has been confiscated. Enjoy your stay and most importantly, don't forget that your American Killing School Life begins now!" He shouted before he began softly chuckling that quickly evolved into a full out maniacal laughter before he suddenly disappeared.

We all sat there in utter silence as time seemed to freeze. I knew we all felt the same cold dread as time slowly drilled all the information that was rushed at us into our minds. All of a sudden I heard Sienna collapse to her knees and whimper. "I wanna go home. I WANT MY MOMMY!" She cried out throwing her head back as she began bawling. Helen quickly bent down and patted her back. "Do not worry, Sienna. I can ensure we will all get out of here and I also can say that no one here is thinking of killing someone. After all a killing game like this is…"

"The most fun I will have in such a long time." A voice said coldly. Most everyone looked back to see Melinda smiling. She looked as if she was not fazed by anything that has just happened. 'But that's impossible! Not even she can be okay with this!' Helen then stood up and glared at her. "That is not a good thing to say! Our lives are at risk here including yours! We have to look for a means of escape!" Melinda chuckled. "But why would I escape when I have yet to hunt the biggest prey I never even thought of? Another human."

We all looked at her stunned. "Are you serious?! That's horrible to even suggest!" Shana shouted at her. "But it's true. I have hunted every kind of animal known to man except for man itself. I wonder how I will do it." I felt myself tense up as I saw Jayden approach her. "Now hold it. Just because you are a woman and a classmate of mine does not mean I will allow you to go running amuck killing an innocent life." Jayden growled at her. She simply looked up at him with a finger to her lip. "You'd be fun to hunt. You could actually be challenging to beat with you being so stacked." She then turned to Luca. "Or maybe you. The Ultimate Traceur would certainly give good chase. Or maybe even you." Her gaze now fixated on me. "Someone who is as rich and famous as you certainly could make your hide very valuable."

I sneered at her as she smiled while backing off. "But it's not like I'm the only one here that is capable of killing." With that said I looked around and saw that everyone was looking directly at each other, not focusing on one person as their eyes glanced over everyone. Some of us had looks of fear, some with suspicion, and some that were mixed. "Everyone is already feeling anxious and scared because they don't know who is capable of what. Some of us will think someone will not be able to kill but given a good enough reason and that person won't hesitate to turn on us to satisfy themselves in some way. That's why it'll be even more fun. To see you all squirm and run around with your heads chopped off as you continue to suspect each other."

I hated hearing this psycho talk but she wasn't wrong. Being an actor I have done my fair share of horror movies and I know that people are capable of killing no matter who they are. I once played a child killer who killed his entire family of 10 just because he felt spited by his family. I knew this all too well and that thought terrified me as I saw a few people began making their way out of the auditorium with only a select few left standing there.

Me, Damian, Helen, Willie, Luca, Brenda, Jayden, Tommy, Mikayla, and Shana were all that was left as the other students vanished from the room. Helen stepped forward. "Look… I won't lie. This situation isn't looking good and our chances are somewhat bleak but I just want you to know that if you need counseling I will be here to help. But for now, let us search and try to find a way out. Then we will reconvene in the nearby cafeteria in one hour to discuss what we found. Also we should let everyone who left early know about our upcoming meeting so we can discuss it with them too. Sound good?" She asked. We all nodded as we about split up before Jayden blocked the door.

"We should stay in pairs. To ensure no one is left alone. I believe those of us here can do pairs without concern since none of us left alone. The others are either gonna be dangerous around or cautious of us so best to not be alone right now." He told us before looking around. Damian smiled as he hooked his arm around Helen. "I volunteer to watch out for Miss Kibby. A delicate flower such as you should be protected by a strong man like me." Suddenly Damian was picked up by Jayden and was carried out. "You're staying with me." He replied blankly. "Oh come on man! You're cramping my style and my vest!" Damian cried out as he hung down in defeat.

Helen looked back at the rest of us as Jayden and Damian left. "Well then, I believe the rest of us should stay with someone of the same gender too. I will go with Mikayla, Brenda will be with Shana, Willie will go with Tommy, and Kai and Luca will be the last group." No one had any reason to complain when she divided us up. We each found our partners and began making our way out.

I walked next to Luca as we made our ways to what I assumed were the dormitories. Neither of us spoke to each other as I think we were both freaked out by all this. I took in what I was looking at but all I was thinking about was Monokuma's parting words that continued to echo in my mind. "Your American Killing School Life begins now! Puhuhuhu! AAAHHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

 **Chapter 1: Lending a Despairing Hand**

 _And so the killing game begins! Which characters are your favorite and which ones do you despise? Who do you think will live and who will die? What do you think of each student in general? I would love to know! Please leave reviews and share your thoughts! Puhuhuhu! Until next time everyone!_


	4. Chapter 1: Lending a Despairing Hand

**Day 1 Continued**

An hour had passed since we had a major bombshell dropped on us. Not only were we trapped inside America's Hope's Peak Academy but we are now forced to participate in this killing game if we have any hope of leaving this place. The psycho bear that's been running around that started this all has given us all regulations to follow. I had already looked through them multiple times already but found myself looking over them again. I wanted to ensure that I didn't forget them due to what nearly happened to Brenda and Jayden.

Rule 1: Students must remain within the school premises and are not allowed to leave without the mandatory requirements.

Rule 2: "Nighttime" will last from 10 pm to 7 am. Certain areas and rooms are off limits at this time.

Rule 3: Sleeping anywhere else besides the dormitories is strictly prohibited and will be punished.

Rule 4: Violence against Headmaster Monokuma is also prohibited as well as the destruction of surveillance cameras and monitors.

Rule 5: In order to graduate, a student must kill and become "the blackened" and not be discovered. Killing more than two is prohibited.

Rule 6: New rules may be added as the headmaster sees fit.

Rule 7: If anything the headmaster finds is unwelcome in a school environment, then he has the right to confiscate it for as long as he sees fit.

I sighed before closing the e-handbook. Soon a slam on the round cafeteria table I was sitting at woke me from my daze as Helen looked upon everyone. "So besides the ten of us that originally split up, there is only one other person who joined us?" She asked as we looked over at Marcel who joined up when Helen and Mikayla found him during their search.

Each group sat at their own table except Helen who was the only one standing. "It appears so. We found Paul and Evelyn in the library but they refused to join us." Jayden reported. Shana looked at Helen next. "We had seen Melinda in the kitchen earlier but she seemed… preoccupied with a big slab of meat." Finally I stood up and looked at her. "Me and Luca found Sienna in her dorm but she was too scared to come out."

Helen nodded her understanding. "Alright I see. In that case we shall begin. I will tell you all what me and Mikayla and also Marcel found when he joined us, during our search. We went around the hallways to check all the classrooms and unfortunately the windows in all of them are made of flexy glass and are all barred off and painted over. No one can see in or out and no way to break the glass. Also the main entrance has a thick metal door blocking the entrance and no way to get it open. Now who is next?" No one spoke up so she looked around and pointed to me. "Kai! What did you find?"

I nodded as I looked to the others. "Well we checked out the dormitories and just like the classrooms apparently, the windows are also painted and barred off. Just like Monokuma told us, all our things are in there but somethings have been confiscated. I had a tablet but it was taken because I could do facetime with Terry on it. Besides that, there was nothing else we could notice."

Helen nodded before looking to Jayden who stood up next to Damian, whose arms were crossed with a displeased expression. He just can't have any luck with the ladies right now. "We went by and found a library that had thousands of books piled on high shelves and a lounge area near the commons where people can hang out and have fun but nothing of importance in either location."

Brenda was next to stand as she delivered her report. "Me and Shana looked around here initially but didn't find anything. But we did find that the kitchen is stuffed with tons of food and ingredients in all the walk-in refrigerators, freezers, and pantries. Monokuma even scared us when he popped in and told us the food gets restocked every week. Guess the whole living here forever thing holds true to that."

Finally Willie stood up as the last group got ready to tell us what they found. "Well see, Tommy and I wandered around not really finding anything else besides a few blocked off areas as well as two other rooms that were accessible. One was a warehouse filled with all kinds of equipment and items for us to use but nothing of which that could help us escape. However there was a school store and we did find something in there." We all looked at them in shock, feeling a rush of excitement. That's when Tommy walked up to Helen and handed her a small bottle. She looked at it and screeched as she dropped it on my table. Everyone looked down as it rolled over to show a skull with crossbones on it.

Luca and I jumped back in surprise and everyone else gasped upon seeing the bottle. "Is that… poison?" Marcel asked his voice a bit shaky. Tommy nodded as he continued. "That's not all. The school store not only has neat little knickknacks that you can get but they have a small variety of weapons, poisons, and other dangerous items hidden among those trinkets. What makes it worse is everything in there is out in the open which means it's accessible to anyone."

"We best quarantine that room and make it off limits. Last thing we want is for someone to go in and have multiple different ways to kill us in their disposal." Jayden suggested. Helen nodded in agreement. "Yes. We will do so immediately. Yet it seems it's just as the bear said. There is no method of escaping but fear not. If we just make an oath to each other that no matter what may come we will avoid any senseless violence and live together peacefully until we can find a way out, agreed?"

Everyone looked at each other before nodding and shouting in unison, "Agreed!" Luca raised his hand. "Yes Luca?" Helen called on him like a teacher would. "I think we should make one more agreement. It's in regard to the nighttime rule. I think it would be best to avoid leaving our dorms at that time since a killer would most likely strike when we are most vulnerable. Also we should meet up each morning to ensure nothing has happened to anyone." She smiled at him and put her hands over her heart. "Oh, what a spectacular idea that is indeed. Thank you for contributing such a wonderfully theorized thought. Let's give Mr. Archer a big hand everyone!" She cheered while making small claps in one of her palms. The rest of us slowly began clapping along as Luca looked to the side with a blush of embarrassment.

"Is there anything anyone else would like to bring up before we part ways?" Helen asked, looking around. After a few seconds of silence she nodded. "Alright, then in that case I call this meeting adjourned. We shall meet up altogether tomorrow so let's just live things out here as if it were a normal day out there. Dismissed!" With that shouted out everyone began walking away.

I found myself in my dorm as I looked around. It was fair to say the least. The bed had a nice red comforter set on with a dresser next to it. I had checked it earlier and found all my clothes there. I also saw my books stacked on the top of the dresser and my Oscar Terry had packed placed at the very top. I also happened to have packed a small framed picture of me and Terry when he first met me at the final night of the High School Musical production my community put on. I had a brown wig on, holding a basketball to my side, and wore the basketball costume to look almost exactly as Zac Efron did in the movie. Terry was kneeling next to me, wearing the same black suit he always wore as he and I smiled with peace signs on our fingers. I grabbed the photo as I reminisced that day for a while before I sighed in defeat. I placed the photo down and turned back to my bed and fell on top of it, not bothering to get changed or even get under the sheets as I felt myself slowly drift off to slumber land.

Eventually I felt myself stir as I woke up and stretched myself out. I looked up at the wall clock in my room and saw that it read 9:35 pm. I nearly slept all afternoon since I was in the bed around 3 or 4 earlier. I rose off the bed and quickly adjusted the messy sheets before I turned around to walk into my personal bathroom. It had the usual sink, toilet, and bathtub with I could use for a shower or to soak myself in a bath but right now I just wanted to wash my face off. It always helped me relax a bit especially since I woke up knowing exactly where I still was.

I turned on the sink and cupped my hands under the flowing hot water. I quickly splashed it on my face and breathed heavily once I took my hands away after rubbing it for about ten seconds. I dried my face off before I looked up at the round mirror and stared at myself. Then suddenly I felt something. It wasn't like someone was behind me, I could see that from the mirror, but I could have sworn I felt a small hand caress my inner thigh. "You have such a nice ass. Is that why you were recruited as an actor?" I heard behind me. I lurched around and jumped back with a scream when I saw the little devil behind me.

"What the hell man! How did you get in? I locked my door!" I yelled angrily at him. He laughed in his paws as he looked to me. "I can get in wherever I want using my teleportation powers! Well what I do is close enough that it could be considered that at least."

I glared at him before stomping out of the bathroom. "Leave me alone." He then looked saddened by my outburst but I didn't care. "Aw. He hates me and just when I was gonna offer you something nice too."

I stopped and looked back to him cautiously. "What are you talking about?" He perked up again. "Did I catch your attention? Then allow me to show you your surprise." He then reached down to grab at his crotch as his arms began moving forward and back rapidly. I stepped back in horror as I quickly realized what he was doing as he began grunting and moaning. "Oh! I'm so pent up! My white stuffing is gonna go everywhere!" He cried out as I somehow saw his cheeks flush almost worse than mine. Then before I could even register what was happening, white streaks spewed out of him and flew right at my face. I fell back on my bed and covered myself with a scream as I felt the streams… gently fall on me? I slowly removed my arms from my head to see white streamers resting on my body and Monokuma holding a birthday popper in his hands and now wearing a party hat. "Happy Birthday!" He shouted out before he fell to his side, literally rolling around in laughter.

I felt my fists tighten as I threw the streamers off of me and ran to the door. "Leave me alone!" I couldn't help but shout as I open the door and ran out into the hallway. But as soon as I turned out the door I ran straight into someone and ended up on my ass again. This time I hit my head when I collided with the person and I gripped my head tightly in pain. 'Yep, I can already feel the goose egg forming on my head.' I groaned to myself as I just sat there in absolute pain. "Kai?" I heard the voice above me as I looked up through one open eye. It was Luca looking down confused. "Dude, you gotta stop meeting up with me like this. You're gonna hurt yourself a lot worse if you don't watch where you're going." He chuckled as he knelt down in front of me. "You okay man? What happened?"

I sighed before looking up. "It's stupid. Monokuma just randomly appeared in my room and decided to pull a dumb prank on me." Luca looked in my dorm and then looked back at me. "He did?" I heard the confusion in his voice and looked back into my room. I noticed Monokuma was gone and the mess he had made with that popper was already cleaned up.

I growled as I stood myself up. "Just forget it." I was about to walk off but found the collision left me a bit dizzy as I almost lost my balance. But I felt a substantial weight wrap around me as I saw Luca had caught me before I fell. "Hey man careful. You ran straight into my chin and it looks like your head took most of that blow. Here let me take you to the kitchen and get you a bag of ice for your head." After making a fool out of myself twice in succession just now I just wanted to be alone but I found that I couldn't refuse since I couldn't really stand on my own anyway.

Luca quickly closed my door and locked it with my key and then hurried me over to the cafeteria. He helped me get seated down and then took off as he ran to the kitchen to get the bag of ice ready for me. After a few agonizing minutes of sitting there with the throbbing in my head not diminishing in any way, I soon heard his footsteps approach and felt the bench slightly jump when he sat down near me. I heard the bag of ice hit the table and slid over to me before I felt to shivering touch of the ice nip at my elbow.

I quickly took the bag and pressed it against my head as I felt my brain begin to throb from a headache that was beginning to form. I cringed in pain as I felt a corner of an ice cube jab itself on my goose egg. "Hey careful. Don't hurt yourself." I heard Luca say warily. I looked over to him and smiled, putting on my fake face again. "Not to worry. I just want to make sure this headache I'm getting won't form into a migraine." I reassured him.

Luca didn't look to sure of what I said but shrugged as I noticed him rubbing his chin. "Oh that's right! I'm sorry I ran into you. Is your chin hurting because of me?" I asked him worried. He shook his head with a reassuring smile. "Nah. I hardly felt it." That statement took me off guard as I stared at him. "But I ran into you full force which left me dizzy with a goose egg and headache yet you hardly even felt it? How does that work?"

"Well being a traceur means that to become one you have to fall enough times in order to know how get back up without any worry of falling or hurting yourself. I've hurt myself so many times doing my parkour that I've developed quite the low pain tolerance. I remember this one time I jumped out of a second floor window and landed a bit wrong as I fell forward and skidded across the sidewalk. I not only scratched my face up but I actually my thumbnail in half when my hand was pushed against the cement under my body. But at the moment I was feeling the thrill of having jumped out the window that I didn't even realize that my thumbnail was still hanging on me like a broken hinge or the fact my face looked like it was just rubbed against a cheese grater and I continued running along walls and stuff. It wasn't until I got home and looked in the mirror that I noticed the condition I was in." He reminisced as he told me the story. He even chuckled to himself when it was all over and I found that I was smiling as well as he told the story despite how painful it sounded.

"That's amazing. I bet no other traceur has the pain endurance you've got." I told him. He meekly replied to that after he shrugged. "Maybe, I mean I can still feel pain. If I broke a bone or got a shard of glass stuck in me then I will without a doubt feel unimaginable pain so it's not like I'm immortal. Besides I bet a lot of other traceurs have an even greater pain tolerance than me." There he goes again. Making his talent and the things about him seem to not matter. I just had to know why he did that.

"Hey Luca?" I said to him at this point removing the ice from my head. "Yes?" He asked curiously. "Why do you keeping humbling yourself like that? You seem to put yourself down everytime I bring up the remarkable things your talent has helped you to do. Why is that?"

Luca tensed up a bit before looking away. "I'd… rather not say. I'm not too comfortable when it comes to certain things about my past." I had to say I didn't like his answer and avoided my question but I respected it nonetheless. I was just like that and I was sure everyone on this planet was like that. We all have our secrets of the past that we don't want others to know about. So I just left it at that.

He then looked back to me and smiled. "Well enough about me. I wanna hear something about you. I mean I know what you're like in your movies as your characters but what about you personally? As far as your Wikipedia page is concerned you haven't shared your past with anyone." 'So he's looked at my wiki page huh? Should have figured as much since he made it obvious that meeting me was something he was looking forward to.' I thought of something to talk about and decided to bring up my start as an actor.

"Well I got my start at my kid's community play for High School Musical when I was six. It was the first play I ever took part in. Mother only allowed me because I kept the good behavior she wanted from me for over two weeks." I told him. He looked to me with a small cringe in his face. "Oof. That's a rough start. Was your mother always so strict?" I shrugged. "She had to be. Things got rowdy for her when I first started to pretend I was in the movies I'd watch in secret past my curfew. She caught me when I was imagining myself as a cowboy in "The Shakiest Gun in the West" starring Don Knotts!"

"I see. Well then it was that play that got you your start in acting in general or was it the big shot you got?" He questioned me. "Well at first it wasn't supposed to be anything big but it turned out that way when the girl who played Sharpay had her father come in early for a rehearsal to watch us before we ended for the night. He had a connection to Terry, my agent today, and told him about my potential. Terry came down and watched our performance on the final night before he approached Mother and I and offered me an opportunity to act as a real celebrity, telling me he saw my full potential on that stage. And of course Mother wouldn't let me go until Terry did the proper paperwork and sent me off once it was all done."

"Paperwork? Usually the agent has the mom sign stuff like that, right?" Luca asked puzzled. "Not in this case. After that I left with Terry and he and I have been together ever since. Being here now is the only time I have ever been away from him besides when I'm on set and he's standing on the sidelines." Luca blinked in surprise. "You haven't even gone back to see your mother?" I shook my head. "No I have. It's just not often that I do since we're on the road most of the time to do interviews, record for movies and stuff, and take part at conventions. She has enjoyed my visits especially since I matured much more then when I was with her." I saw a smile appear on his lips. "She must be really happy Terry has taken such good care of you." I looked down as I felt a smile that felt genuine and real and not forced, slowly creep onto my face. "Yeah, he has."

Suddenly we heard a bell ring as the nearby monitor turned on. Monokuma was sitting in a leather-looking office chair with a margarita in his hand. The background wasn't really noticeable since the chair and bear took up most of the screen. "Ahem, attention students attention! This is your five minute nighttime warning. As such the cafeteria and other areas will be closed off at that time. Now then sleep well everyone and get rested up for another wonderful day of your lives here." With that said, the monitor shut off and me and Luca both let out sighs of annoyance.

Luca soon stood up. "Guess it's time to head for the dorms. Need me to help you get back?" He asked to make sure I was able to stand on my own or not. I simply replied to him by standing up without any trouble. We spent quite a bit of time talking so my body had used that time to recover most of my strength back. "Yeah I'm okay. Let's head back now. Don't wanna be the first ones to break the rules or oaths we took, now do we?" I asked rhetorically as he laughed out before nodding as we began making our way out of the cafeteria. I left the bag of ice on the table considering I didn't feel the pain that much anymore.

Soon we reached the dormitory hallways and that's when I noticed how our rooms were arranged. The girls were on the left side of the hall while the guys were on the right. I also noticed the order of the rooms were alphabetical by last name. From closest to furthest rooms, the girls' rooms were as followed: Brenda, Sienna, Melinda, Helen, Shana, Ollie, Evelyn, and Mikayla. The boys' rooms were the same pattern and were placed like this: Luca, me, Damian, Tommy, Jayden, Marcel, Willie, and Paul.

I found comfort that Luca was in the room next to me. I felt like he was my first real friend here since I've shared my past with him as he did with me. I looked to him as I approached my door and he waved to me before he stepped in. I smiled back as I stepped in and closed my door. I locked the deadbolt and wandered over to my bed. This time I cared enough to take the time to remove my shoes and socks before hopping in the bed and under the sheets this time as well. I felt the warmth of the blanket and comforter soon lull me to sleep as I entered the peaceful realm of my unconscious mind.

 **Day 2**

 _ ***Ding Dong Bing Bong***_

The same bell I heard last night had stirred me from my sleep as I noticed Monokuma appear on the screen the same way he was seen last night on the monitor. "Rise and shine lovelies! It is now 7 A.M. and another fun day awaits you! Puhuhuhu!" After the morning announcement was made I groaned as I wanted to go back to sleep but soon felt my stomach growl so badly it made me recoil into a ball. 'I guess I forgot to eat after what happened yesterday.' I quickly remembered as I forced myself out of bed and slipped my shoes and socks on before heading for the door. As soon as I had opened it I saw a few of the others making their way to the cafeteria.

I stepped out and locked my door behind me before I felt an arm sling around my neck and pull me away from the door. I let out a bark of surprise as I saw the guy's face next to mine. Damian grinned as he pinned me close. "How's it going man?" He asked cheerfully.

I looked to him thoughtfully. "You're in a rather chipper mood today." I noted. All Damian did was giggle as he let me go. I had to rub my neck because he had head locked me pretty tightly. "Yeah man! I am trying to keep that positive attitude Helen wants us to have! Speaking of which I happened to pass by her right before she headed to the cafeteria and she says she wanted to meet you before nighttime." I was taken off guard by this information. "What for?" I questioned him but he just shrugged. "Dunno. She just wanted me to pass it along to you and I didn't pry because it was obvious whatever she wants to discuss will stay between you two."

Many questions now buzzed in my head as I tried thinking about what Helen could possibly want to see me for. That was until I felt my stomach grumble again and realized Damian heard it from the way his smile slowly curled up like the Grinch did when he got an idea. An awful idea. Like when he had a wonderful, awful idea. "Sounds like someone didn't get much to eat." My face flushed as I felt myself shrink in front of him. "Well after yesterday, I kinda forgot about the simple things like eating." Damian then patted my back as he began pushing me along towards the cafeteria. "Not to worry, Kai! We'll get you raring to go today with a big, hearty breakfast!"

Pretty soon we entered the cafeteria where many of the other students were already sitting down and eating. However I saw Helen standing close to the entrance as she stared out to us as if she'd been waiting for us. She smiled as she greeted us. "Good morning Damian, Kai! Me and Luca have prepared a wonderful breakfast for you all. Please enjoy." I wanted to ask her what Damian had told me about but I needed to get something in me so I walked over to see a breakfast buffet set up with all of the usual breakfast foods. Eggs both scrambled and fried, toast, bacon, sausage, cereal, and even more.

I quickly grabbed two sausage links and bacon strips, a piece of toast, and a bowl of cereal with a glass of orange juice. I began walking over and saw most everyone was here. The only exceptions were Marcel, Melinda, Shana, and Paul. I figured those four were either not caring about meeting up for breakfast or just lazy. Me and Damian saw Tommy, Luca, Brenda, and Jayden sitting at one table and we figured we'd join them. Damian sat next to Brenda while I took the spot next to him and Luca.

"Morning Kai!" Luca greeted me. I smiled back as I nodded to him. "Morning! So I heard you helped Helen cook all this food?" He grinned with a quick nod. "Yeah. We actually got Monokuma to let the two of us go in at 6 to get everything ready." I hesitated to ask but I found that I wanted to know about that. "You spoke to that psycho bear at 6 am?"

"Yeah well I always wake up at 6 in the morning. It's kind of a daily routine for me. Also getting his attention wasn't hard. Only problem was he wasn't too happy with us apparently waking him up. He said this would be the only time he'd allow us to use the kitchen before nighttime ended." He explained. 'A mechanical bear needs sleep too?' I wondered. Soon we began discussing other things and the others at the table quickly joined in.

After we were getting close to finishing we saw the last four students slowly begin making their way in. Helen was still standing near the entrance as she greeted them like she did me and Damian. Now everyone was eating and soon everyone was done and soon we all went out on our own.

I now sat in my room thinking about what to do. I figured it would be best if I went to talk to someone since I had **Free Time!** I quickly got out of the dorm and began searching for someone. It took me a while but I saw Jayden and Helen near the school store with Jayden putting a metal lock on the door handles. Helen grabbed the doors and gave it a few hard tugs, checking the sturdiness of the lock. She gave a firm nod, confirming it would take a lot to break the lock off. "Thank you Jayden! You may now go and enjoy yourself." He only nodded to her before he greeted me with a small pat on my shoulder before he walked off.

Helen beamef happily as she saw me approach. "Why hello Kai! I hope you have been getting along with the others." I couldn't help but smile at her eagerness. "Yeah I have. Hey listen I will just cut right to the chase. Damian told me you wanted to see me about something important."

She nodded as a stern expression took root on her face. "I wanted to ask a favor of you. I have offered counseling to everyone here. Most have accepted but I would like to request you help out too." The surprise she would see on me made her giggle. "Wait you want me to help counsel the others?"

"Well in a way yes." She replied. "I will handle the questioning and analyzing them as I let them pour their feelings out but I want you to just be there as their friend. Of course I am gonna be a friend too but most everyone here knows who you are and trusts you because of your acting career so I think they'll rely on you just as much as me."

I blinked. "Well I don't know. I haven't really made friends my age and they are more in tune with the skills to talk and socialize with each other than me." She frowned at me as she looked like a loving mother about to sternly speak to her naughty kid. "Listen Kai, you think it was easy for everyone to get along?" "Huh?" "What if I told you I was just as shy as Sienna when I was younger and it was because of those years that inspired me to take up this career."

I was shocked as I replied, "Well it would be difficult to believe since you are so loveable and easy going." She smiled with a hint of sadness I could detect. "Well you'd be wrong. At first I was that way because I was someone who desperately wanted to be recognized but... I never got it. All the other kids were exceptional at my private school with arts and crafts and sporting activities and they all got praise of encouragement. Me? Well I would be lucky to see a participation award. The teachers never acknowledged me and the effort I put into my projects, the other kids never patted my back telling me, "Good job" or "Nice try", and I was left feeling down that I was never good enough to meet anyone's expectation. Not even my parents."

I couldn't stop the sad words she muttered through her sad smile from affecting me as my heart cringed up in my chest. "But then I watched a video on motivating yourself with a quote that has helped me ever since. "I have learned that as long as I hold fast to my beliefs and values - and follow my own moral compass - then the only expectations I need to live up to are my own." Do you know who said that quote?" She asked me suddenly. I began thinking as three names popped in my head. Confucius, Michelle Obama, and Henry Cloud.

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 **(You guys can participate too! Put your guess in before you continue reading in the review and read the next sentence to see if you got it right or not! Also these will pop up with the other free times occasionally so join in when it shows up.)**

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Soon the first name that popped in my head was the name I bleated out. "Um, isn't it Michelle Obama?" I asked not too sure of my answer. A simply grin and nod was seen at my answer. "Yes! That's right! She's such an inspiration to so many people and when I thought on her words I realized I wasn't doing so. After that I didn't try to meet anyone's expectations except my own. The result of that made me realize that others might feel the same as me so I wanted to be the one to help motivate and inspire people since I never really got that myself. That's why I became a motivational speaker and I have studied psychology and human behavior to perfect it. I had clients lined outside seeking my advice when I was 12. They were simply other kids from my school at first but then word got out and then I was helping their families and soon their families' friends and then my clients began pouring in all over the country.

'I feel bad that was her start but maybe it was for the best. Helen has helped so many people for so long now and she's still in high school! That alone would inspire someone. I feel like we've become closer friends today.' I thought happily. We chatted about a few other topics before parting ways.

I figured there was still a good amount of the day left so I wandered around to find someone else. I happened to bump into Sienna walking into the cafeteria and she cringed. "Oh no! Kai! I must apologize I-I didn't see you... You must hate me now." She whispered with tears pricking at her eyes. I assured her it wasn't a problem and I didn't hate her. I thought if I should try hanging out with her and figured she could use the company. She looked to me surprised. "Well... if you're sure then how about we just walk around. I can gather thoughts better when I'm on my feet."

Me and Sienna walked around the school for some time. We found ourselves near the library and then I saw Sienna stop dead in her tracks. She lightly trembled looking at the ground and caressing her left pigtail. "Hey Sienna, you okay?" I asked in worry for the small girl. She shook her head keeping her gaze away from me. "Not... really." She whispered out. That was understandable. I mean we were all put into this terrifying situation with other strangers and no way of escaping except to kill. I smiled to her remembering the promise I made to Helen. "Hey don't worry. I know we can all make it out of here. We just need to believe in our friends!"

She looked to me with shock. "Friends? I don't have those." She confessed. Well I wouldn't doubt her words. "But why? You look nice enough and I bet your talent draws in a lot of people who'd wanna be your friend." She shook her head. "I don't think so. I mean I've always been afraid to approach people. The only one whose been able to talk to me is my mom. She was the one who got me into figure skating." I smiled. 'I think I might have found something.' I wondered as I pressed on with the theory I came up with. "So then tell me how she did that. Was she a figure skater too?"

Sienna nodded looking closer to my eyes but occasionally looking back to her feet. "Um yeah. My mommy has always ice skated on the frozen winter lake in Michigan and when I was 5 she took me out there to try it. I was very bad and cried everytime I fell but mommy would always hug me and help me. She helped me get better and soon I asked her if I could perform for the neighbors. She asked if I was sure since I tend to freeze up in front of others when they approach me but I begged her." "So what happened next?" I asked quizzically. She then looked up as if she was remembering with her hands clinging together in front of her chest. "Well I was frozen but I looked to my mommy and she told me not matter what happened that she would be proud of me. I closed my eyes as I let the music enrapture me. I was so lost in the music that I was suddenly dancing on the ice like a real figure skater. I imagined how my mommy would perform and I felt like I was soaring through the air. Suddenly I realized the music ended and the entire town erupted in cheers. That's when I opened my eyes. Apparently I had performed a Triple Lutz which is a move that takes quite some time to perfect yet I was able to do it on my first go."

"Wow! That's so cool! How did you do it?" I asked excitedly. "W-Well I just thought that my mommy would use that move so I just did what she would have. I then had mommy teach me and perfect my dances and I soon participated in competitions around the country and won almost all of them. I was given a nickname as the Blind Ice Dancer." I looked to her confused. "What do you mean? Your obviously not blind." After I said that I thought I heard a light chuckle but I wasn't too sure since it was so quiet. "No it's because I dance with my eyes close." My eyes widened as she explained. "Well it's because I'd freeze up if I see anyone besides my mom staring at me. I know how big a common ice rink is and I use the music and tempo to help me map out where I am on the rink with my dancing."

"That... I can't even describe how incredible that is! And look at you right now!" I shouted happily but she cowered back at my outburst. "W-What!? What did I do?" I shook my head reassuring her it wasn't bad. "No I mean you say you freeze up when you talk to other but you haven't really done that talking with me right?" She gasped in shock and I could've sworn I saw her lips edge into such a tiny smile. "C-Can we do this again but maybe next time you can tell me about yourself?" I smiled sweetly at her and tenderly replied, "Of course. I'd love nothing more." Soon we parted ways before I headed to the cafeteria and got me some dinner.

 _ ***Ding Dong Bing Bong***_

Soon the nighttime announcement sounded and I went to my dorm. I quickly collapsed myself in the warm bed and soon drifted to sleep.

 **Day 3**

 _ ***Ding Dong Bing Bong***_

I quickly was woken up by the bell and morning announcement as I felt drool stop leaking off my cheek as it had pooled on the pillow. I wiped my face off and quickly made my way to the cafeteria. Once again Helen was greeting us as we entered. Soon all 16 students were accounted for.

"Glad to see no one's bitten the dust yet." Shana chuckled as she watched the last of us step inside with Helen following behind. Marcel looked over to her. "Dude, don't say that! It's not cool to joke around with our lives on the line." Shana glared at him before looking away. "Well excuse me for trying to lighten the mood."

"Hey there's no need to argue." I interceded the two before things would get out of hand. "Shana did have the right idea to help ease the tension everyone's probably feeling still but she did come off a bit rude." Shana then fixated her eyes on me. "Rude? I was only trying to help! But if anything your rude for singling out a lady like that." Suddenly Damian shot up from his seat and looked around frantically. "What lady?!" He shouted as I could see steam building up in Shana. 'This is not going well and we all just woke up.' I grumbled as Shana shot up and chased after Damian with her pick ax in hand. Damian ran into the wall as Shana chucked her ax. It spun through the air before embedding itself in the wall right in front of Damian's head. He yelped as he fell back and Shana slowly approached him. "Ever say something insensitive again and I won't miss next time." With that said she tugged the ax out and walked away, leaving a big hole in the wall and in Damian's ego.

Luca leaned over to Helen after we all saw that outburst. "Seems a lot of us still aren't trying to get use to each other." She nodded in agreement. "Don't worry. I have already been helping Shana with anger management classes and I think a lot of the guys here need an etiquette class." We all laughed as everyone made small talk. Soon we all finished breakfast and I saw everyone gathered around a table after I had cleaned my dishes. Curious, I rushed over to hear cheering and soon saw that Jayden was in an arm wrestling contest with the others. From what I could see from behind Tommy and Evelyn it wasn't a one versus one bout, it was one against three! Jayden was arm wrestling Luca, Willie, and Marcel. All three of the guys looked like they were struggling to push Jayden's arm back but Jayden sat the not moving an inch. Suddenly his arm whipped down and slammed the other three down resulting in Marcel also being thrown to the ground as well. Everyone gathered around began cheering for Jayden's flawless victory and laughed as the three looked flustered to have lost so easily.

"You gave me quite the challenge. Good job to you all." Jayden said as he shook hands with each of them before helping Marcel up. Luca smiled. "Thanks man. I thought for sure three of us could take you down." There was then a sudden outburst of laughter as we saw Melinda holding her sides. She sat close by at another table with Paul and Ollie sitting with her. "You actually thought you had a chance? Come on even all of you morons put together couldn't outmatch his strength." She then calmed down and looked to the Ultimate Bodyguard. "Say Jayden why don't you sit with us for a while. Stop humoring those nitwits and have a decent talk with us instead." I felt the tension build up in the air again as lightning seemed to strike between his eyes and here. "I thank you for the offer but I would rather speak with my friends here so maybe you three should join us and try to be friendly with everyone."

"What friends?" Paul asked not looking up form the laptop. "How can you be friends after all this and in such short time? This is a killing game we are a part of and I will not be fooled by such petty subjects as friendship and trust. I am not gonna die here but all of you are guaranteed to die if you get all buddy with one another." Ollie just sat there in silence looking indifferent about the conversation. Jayden shook his head. "I'm sorry but if that's the mindset you have then I have nothing to say to you." He replied to Paul but stared at Melinda.

"Well if that's the case then you're as good a bull in the slaughterhouse." Melinda chimed. "Well that's very harsh. But I bet anything you'd die easily too." We heard Willie call out. Melinda's head slowly turned to him as her icy glare was set on him. "What?" Willie quickly stepped forward not showing any signs of fear. "Well if Jayden is gonna die so easily than you're more dead than him. I mean he's packed up as if he were ten bulls! But with you being a lady you're three times as likely to die." I felt myself face palm and knew what would happen.

She slowly stood up and brought out her Bowie knife. "Oh is that so? Then explain this!" She quickly lunged at him and slid down to kick his feet out from under him. Willie was fast and jumped up to avoid it but as soon as he landed she was on her feet and had the knife to his throat. We all gasped in horror thinking she would kill him. We felt it intensify tenfold when Willie spoke up. "Well ladies are smart! They use underhanded tricks to outdo men but I could easily break outta this. But with the knife touching my apple I'd rather not risk provoking the tricky lady."

"I think you've provoked her enough!" We heard a chilled voice on the table the group was still gathered around. We all let out shouts of panic as we saw Monokuma standing there out of nowhere. "So mind telling me what the HELL IS GOING ON HERE!?" Mikayla quickly ran forward and pointed to Melinda who released Willie upon noticing Monokuma. "Well Willie said some very sexist things and..." "Nonono. I mean why is Melinda the only one who has the right idea?! Why haven't you killed anyone yet! It's been two days and all you've done is wasted your energy by chatting and arm wrestling! I've grown bored!" He corrected her.

I glared at Monokuma before approaching him. "Like we've said we are not playing your sick game! Our families and loved ones are gonna soon discover what's happened in here and they will find a way to get us out!" I thought that would get him going but he suddenly laughed quietly. "Puhuhuhu! I doubt that very much!" Tommy was the next one to speak up. "You don't know what our families would do to help us!" Evelyn nodded. "Yeah! This world just wouldn't handle it if my scrumptious self were to just up and disappear!" "You sure about that, Titzilla?" Shana grumbled, her eyes narrowed at her. Evelyn heard this and practically snarled at her. "What the hell did you say?! At least I'm not a flat chested, filthy bitch!" "Well I have a B cup bra as a matter of fact. Yours were probably implanted just before you got here!" Shana shouted back. Evelyn nearly lunged at her before Jayden held her back and grabbed Shana when she flew at her, holding them both in the air as they tried clawing at each other.

Then a piercing screech ran pain in our ears as we all covered them. Jayden had to drop the girls to get his ear covered and the girls rubbed their bottoms with one hand and covered their ears using their other hand and shoulder. We looked over to see Monokuma scratching the tiles with three claws on his paw. "Just shut the hell up already! You can compare boob sizes later because you derailed this conversation!" Brenda chuckled. "As if we'd even continue talking to you. I'm going to my room." With Brenda leading the way everyone began scattering before Monokuma slid in front of the entrance, blocking us. "Nuh-uh! Not until you go to your dorms! All of you!" "Why's that?" Luca asked confused. "Well it's because I have an incentive for you guys. I am requiring you all to go in your rooms and see what is there for you."

I think we all felt a collective shiver go down our spines at his words. "And what if we refuse to look at what you have for us?" Luca continued prying. "Well if any of you think you'll defy me, then don't bother." We suddenly heard a bell go off in our pockets as we pulled out our student handbooks and saw it open up to a new regulation. _Rule 8: Any student that disobeys a direct order from Monokuma is ground for punishment._ I felt a growl reverberate from my stomach as he chuckled again. "Now then, since I now know none of you will defy me, GO TO YOUR ROOMS AND SEE WHAT I PUT IN THERE!" With that he quickly vanished as we all looked to each other. "So... what should we do?" Sienna asked trembling as Ollie came up to her and tapped her shoulder. This made her jump and stare at the tattooed girl in fear. "We do as the bear asks. It is not smart to defy him at this point."

Soon we all nodded as we made our way to the dorm hallway. Soon enough we all looked around at each other before going in our rooms one by one. I took a breath and stepped in my room. I looked around when closing my door and didn't see anything out of the ordinary until I went further in and saw a desk with a small laptop. I looked excited at this and ran over. I sat down on the chair and opened it only to see it was a portable DVD player. I groaned in frustration. "Of course it wasn't a laptop." I sighed out before opening the disc cover. I saw a plain disc already inside with only my name on it. I closed the lid and hit the play button on it. Soon the black screen went blue and then from blue to a picture I gasped at when it appeared. It was the same photo that was on my dresser that I had brought with me. Soon the devil's pet bear could be heard as he began narrating.

"Kai Brugger, the Ultimate Actor, how do you suppose such a small 6 year old with no real way of being noticed, grew to be top actor in America? Well it's all thanks to Mr. Terry Bobinski, who had a business partner whose daughter happened to be in the same community play as him. Now basically 11 years later and Kai has reached the top of the ladder. All because Terry was there to push him along. He trained him, cared for him, and showed Kai what he needed to succeed and Kai loved Terry for everything. But Kai's also been scared. Scared of what will happen to him and Terry. But right now it's not what is between them Kai should be worried about." Suddenly the picture faded and a video began playing. It was halfway covered with leaves, suggesting it was shot behind a bush. The other half showed Terry and me hugging... in front of the academy?

'What? There was a camera? But how come Terry and I didn't notice?' I thought in complete confusion as I saw us separate and me run inside. Terry stared at the door before he looked in the direction of the camera. "Alright now! Whoever is behind there come out! I promise I won't hurt you unless you try to run." Guess he did notice it. Soon the camera guy stood up as the bush sank into the bottom of the screen. Terry looked at the cameraman befuddled. "What the hell? What are you suppose to be?" I heard him ask as he approached the camera. Then suddenly I heard Monokuma's signature laugh as Terry was then being pounced on by Monokuma. I felt my heart sink as he fought the bear and threw him off but then another snuck up behind him and latched onto his neck. And then another and another and another! By this point I was on my feet with the chair knocked over as I saw Terry desperately fight, trying to pry them off but was soon trapped underneath a battalion of Monokumas! The camera turned as I saw Monokuma holding the camera in his own face. I could hear Terry screaming out, "What the hell's going on here!? Let me go! Kai! What have you done with him!? Kai! KAHHHHHHHHHHH!" Then Monokuma spoke up with Terry's screams being mostly masked by him talking. "What has become of Terry? What has become of the most important person in your life? Wanna know?" The screen the went black as text appeared. YOU WILL FIND THE ANSWER OUTSIDE!

My face was drowned in sweat and I didn't realize that I was screaming bloody murder! "Terry! TERRY!" I cried out as I slammed on the player as if it would let me get Terry out. I grabbed the player and then blindly chucked it across the room. I soon heard glass breaking and quickly ran over to see I had broken my picture frame. I slowly reached down and took the photo out. "Why him? WHY?!" I set the photo on my bed and began making my way to the door stumbling from how badly I was shaking. As soon as that door opened I saw many of the others outside their rooms too and they had the same face of horror I had.

Mikayla shot out of her room and suddenly lurched over before vomiting right in front of everyone. She coughed as she looked up. "That can't be real! It just can't!"

Willie was resting on his knees, leaned back against the wall as tears poured down the corner of his eyes. "Why? They didn't do anything wrong. Why did they do this?" He cried through a hoarse voice.

"I can't take it! I gotta get out of here!" Sienna screamed out as she bolted down the hall but was grabbed from behind as we saw Jayden run and stop her. Despite seeing tears fall from behind his sunglasses he face looked calm and collected like before. "Sienna, I know your scared. We all are but you can't freak out like this. Monokuma wants us to be worried about someone important and drive us mad. We can't give him what he wants." The little girl whimpered before she ran back into him bawling her eyes out as Jayden simply held her close. Her eyes soaked the bottom of this shirt as that was as high as she was to him.

Helen was on her knees too, whimpering as tears fell from her cheeks and stain the ground. Soon she sniffled and stood up. "Jayden is right. Monokuma has threatened our loved ones to make us kill each other! But we're stronger than that! He can't drive us to do his bidding! We're all Ultimates remember! We are strong because of who we are! As long as we power each other's strengths and cover each other's weaknesses than I know we can make it out of this!" Despite the pang of terror I was feeling Helen's words of inspiration made me feel confident. "Yeah. You're right. We are the best of the best! We can make it through this if we work together!" I shouted. I noticed what Helen said reached everyone who was out of their rooms as they began smiling and cheering on. Helen nodded to me. "That's right. Now the best course of action to take is to tell everyone what they saw, that way we can help each other cope with it and so we won't have a reason to kill!"

"No. I won't." Melinda said as she approached Helen. We all saw that her eyes weren't wet and she was trembling. "I refuse to cooperate with you. Besides talking about it won't help." Helen glared at Melinda. "Well I refuse your refusal! If we go over our videos then I know it will help us and..." "No it won't!" Melinda interrupted her which made Helen cringe back. "It will only drive everyone to insanity discussing what we saw. I mean look at pig barf over there." She pointed back to Mikayla who looked down in shame. "Also if we discuss our motives than someone could take advantage of them by saying they could help us "cope" but then stick us in the back to help them escape."

"Y-You don't know that!" Helen shouted as her voice cracked. "I do though. You should know that we all have different values and beliefs and if it that is strong enough, it can provoke anyone to do insane things. Even murder." "But no one here wants that!" Helen shouted as tears began flowing again.

"I do." Melinda replied which made Helen's eyes widen in horror. "T-Then... we'll just do it without you. We can handle this! Isn't that right everyone?" She asked looking out to us with a hope filled smile. But instead of rousing agreement, she only got dead silence as her reply. I looked to see everyone's sad and suspicious faces. Looks like Melinda's words just eradicated Helen's speech. Helen's smile slowly dropped as she scanned the hallway. "Guys?"

"I... want to be able to cope with it but... what if someone takes advantage of me?" Marcel asked.

"Like I'd share that information with any of you." Paul grunted out also looking like Melinda did with no concern to be seen on him.

"I don't want anything happening to... that person in my video by taking about them." Tommy muttered.

Evelyn was staring at the ground. "Well if no one is gonna do it then I sure as hell am not sharing anything."

"I don't wanna think about it!" Sienna cried out in Jayden's stomach.

Helen looked completely defeated. "But... but guys... if we don't then Monokuma will win and one of us might kill. Do you want that? Does anyone here want to die?" Melinda then stepped up and grabbed her by her collar and pulled her close. "You better knock it off Miss President! If you keep trying to be a leader and make us do what you want, I guarantee that the first one to die will be you!" Helen's eyes widened as she was shoved to the ground, crying out in pain as she hit the wall with a hard slam. Sienna nearly dropped forward when Jayden let go of her and charged at Melinda. "That's enough!" He then grabbed her and pulled her back and facing towards him. "Don't go threatening anyone! I swear if you do that again..." "You'll what? Kill me?" Melinda asked as she stared at him unfazed.

We all tensed up even worse when we heard Jayden respond with, "If that's what it takes." He then shoved her away before he helped Helen up. "Are you hurt?" He asked looking concerned. "Besides the throbbing in my head, I'm fine. Thank you." Helen thanked him despite sounding just as defeated as everyone else now. Jayden then looked back to all of us and glared. "Listen up! If anyone tries anything funny I will not allow you to do so got it?!"

Helen looked away. "But what if she's right? What if now I'll be targeted because I tried pushing everyone to do something they don't want?" "Then I will protect you!" Jayden shouted which made her gasp. "That goes for all of you! I promise I will protect you all with my life!" I shook my head as I stepped forward. "But Jayden that's impossible! Even though you're the Ultimate Bodyguard there's no way you can protect 15 people all by yourself! Besides no one wants you to die either so who's gonna protect you!" I shouted at him. He eyes remained unmoving when I approached him. His gaze narrowed at me before he walked away. As he walked I heard him call out to me. "Kai, please come with me. I wish to speak to you alone." He soon went into his room and closed the door.

We all stood there in utter silence and after what felt like an eternity we parted ways. Most of us going back to our rooms while others wandered off somewhere else. Meanwhile I stayed planted where I was before I saw Shana, Sienna, and Mikayla help Helen up and took here down the hall to the recreation room. I felt like my feet turned to stone as I found I couldn't move to Jayden's room. The way he carried himself made it seem like he was mad at me for not helping the situation. I then saw Brenda, Damian, and Luca approach me. "Kai? You okay?" Brenda asked concerned. "I'm fine." I lied.

"You sure man? We all just got a major scare back there." Damian replied back placing his hand on my shoulder. I simply smiled and nodded looking back at them. "Yeah. I am worried Jayden's gonna make me a punching bag now though." Luca then walked up and gave me a reassuring smile. "Well call for us if that's the case. We'll be there." The other two nodded as I sighed. "Not exactly what I was hoping to hear." They all laughed as they let me go as I soon approached the door. I went to knock but figured just to go in since he was expecting me. I slowly opened the door and stepped in. I saw what looked like a small gym packed inside the dorm. Jayden was currently lifting a giant weight above him. I saw there were at least 200 pound weights on each end as he held in above his head. I also saw his shirt was placed nearby and his giant abs and toned chest tensed up as he just stood there. "Glad to see you made it. Please take a seat wherever you like." He motioned to an open chair and the bed. I decided I'd sit on the bed since he made the invitation. I simply sat on the edge as I saw him workout. "So... what did you want to speak with me about?" I asked after a few moments of no words being said.

He then slowly put the weight on the ground before taking the seat next to the bed and bringing it over so he was now seated in front of me. He leaned forward with his right arm on his leg and his left hands dabbing his face and neck with a damp towel. "Listen Kai, I appreciate your concern for me but it is also unnecessary." "What?" I asked him. "I have always had someone get concerned for me. Ever since I began protecting others people always ask me why I would risk myself for others. Would you like to know why?" He asked in such an intimidating tone that I felt fear well up in me. "Uh sure!" He nodded before looking away. "It all started with Tweety." I then felt that fear instantly evaporate into dumbfounded shock. "Wait... are you talking about the Looney Tunes character?"

He chuckled as he looked back. "Kinda. When I was 8 I was asked by my next door neighbor to watch out for her pet parakeet whose name was Tweety because he did look like that character. She was a few years younger than me and she told me she would reward me if I did a good job when she got back from her weekend vacation. I took on the job because I thought it would be easy. The day before the girl came home I had Tweety out of her cage because it was okay for him to be out. However I was playing and I forgot to close my window. As a result of my stupidity, he flew out and I had to track him down. Eventually I did find him but parts of him were now in the belly of a feral cat."

I felt my heart pang at that already guessing where it would go from there but still asked regardless. "What happened to the girl when she got home?" He sighed as his free hand propped up on his other leg and rested his forehead in his palm. "I tried covering it because I was scared she'd be mad. I put Tweety in a shoe box and hid him under my bed and then went to the store and got another parakeet to replace him. When she came by to get him I showed her the bird and then asked me again where he was. I knew it failed when the bird didn't act like Tweety did. So I brought out the box and confessed. Despite getting him killed she forgave me but declined me when I offered the new parakeet to her as an apology. She then told me that Tweety was like a little brother. No matter who you get to try and replace him, he can never truly be replaced." Then Jayden took his sunglasses off and wiped at his eyes as I heard small whimpers emit from him. He then looked up and I gasped as I took in for the first time his eye color. They were a deep red that seemed too unnatural to have as an eye color. "So I promised myself that I would never let a life be taken while I live. That is why I became a bodyguard. I want to protect anyone who needs protecting. I know our current situation means it might be impossible for me and to that I say... you're right."

"Huh?" I was taken back by that. "You're right. There's no possible way for me to protect 15 others from dying. But even knowing that I won't give up. As long as I can help even one person escape and fail everyone else or die trying then I am more than okay with that. I have failed others besides Tweety but I haven't let that stop me before. If someone needs protecting, I will keep protecting until I die!" I blinked as I looked down. "I didn't realize you took your job so seriously. I'm sorry if I did upset you." He patted my head and ruffled my hair a bit. "There, there. No need to worry. I am more than happy you approached me about that. I can give at least someone here reassurance. Thank you for listening. I am going to see if the others would like to ask for my services. I know Helen for sure will want it after the nasty threats Melinda said."

"I understand Jayden. I'll let you get going." I told him. He nodded with a smile as he slipped his sunglasses back on and grabbed his shirt and put that back on as well. We then exited his room and he locked it up behind him. "Well my friend, you just try to enjoy your day." Once again he patted my head and ruffled it a bit before he walked off. 'I feel like I understand Jayden a lot better now. But I shouldn't dwell on things. Let's just go find someone else to talk to."

I then began looking around trying to find someone else to talk to. I soon noticed Tommy standing near the entrance of the school. "Hey Tommy." I called over to him as I sped walked to him. He looked back and waved. "Hey there, Kai. Did you wanna see me?" I quickly stopped when I came up to him. "Yeah. I just wanna try and get my mind off things." Tommy chuckled. "I know that man. Sure let's just talk." We just sat down on the ground and began talking about little things that came to mind. About 10 minutes into the conversation I brought up the next question. "So tell me what it's like on your expeditions? I'm curious as to what happens during your time out in the field."

He smiled as he nodded. "Well for the most part it's hot. We tend to go into more desert locations than anything else but we once went to Antarctica and found a Spinosaurus fossil and a baby one too. But I remember once I fell into an old trench in some badlands in Canada that had built up on top so it wasn't seen. My team desperately tried to dig me up but the trench was so small and deep it took them almost a week to get me out." I felt my hands tighten on my thighs as his story progressed. "Holy crap! A week? Why did it take that long?" Tommy smiled as he shrugged. "Well it was too small for them to go in without widening the hole and very deep like I said. Also it didn't help that I didn't stay put." "Wait you didn't stay where you fell?"

"How could I? Turned out that trench led me to an Amphicoelias fossil. One of the largest dinosaurs we know and that trench ran alongside the entire long-neck dinosaur." I shook my head in disbelief. "Dud you must be the luckiest guy in the world!" Tommy sighed. "Well I don't really think so." My head tilted at that. "Why's that?" He then looked back and smiled. "Because I never won the lottery." The two of us laughed at that before I notice Tommy looked upset for real this time. "Tommy?" He looked back. "What? Oh sorry. I spaced out there for a second. Now that I think about it I'm feeling kinda hungry. I'll catch up with you later alright Kai?" Before I got the chance to say anything, he was on his feet and out of there. 'Wonder if I said something wrong.' Well I couldn't dwell on it.

I still had time to see one more person before nighttime so I stood up and began searching. But this time I didn't find them, they found me. Evelyn suddenly pounced on me from behind and scared me. "Oh Kai! There you are! I've been looking all over for you." She cooed as she hugged me from behind and press herself flush against me. I could feel her breasts squish into my back which made me blush so hard as I cringed with the sudden intimate feeling she was giving off. "Do you mind Evelyn? You're kinda in my personal space." I saw her head appear behind my left shoulder as her eyes gleamed at me. I shivered when she caressed my cheek and blew on my ear. "Oh but I just wanted us to have... a special moment together." I then felt her grab my arm and drag me off towards her dorm. She quickly threw me in and slammed it shut, locking it behind her.

I looked around and saw that her room was decorated with dark curtain over the window, which seemed unnecessary since there was no light to block it with. I figured it was for the atmosphere considering her room made me feel like I walked into a fortune teller's tent. I turned around to Evelyn as she approached me from the door. "Evelyn, what are you doing? Why did you bring me here?" But instead of an answer I was suddenly shoved onto her bed and before I could register what was happening I saw Evelyn crawl on the bed and over me until her boobs were practically dangling over my face. If my cheeks were beet red then my entire face would be swollen with how heated I felt in my head. I heard her sigh as I looked up to her staring down at me. "Oh. You're so cute. Have you never been with a woman like me?"

"I-I never been with anyone like this." I told her as I tried moving up before she laid herself on top of me with her chest now squishing against mine. I looked down and from that vantage point I saw a lot of skin showing on her chest and quickly averted my gaze. "Oh are you a virgin? Oh that's too precious! A famous celebrity that still hasn't popped his cherry. Don't be afraid to look." She then grabbed my head and forced me to look at her nearly exposed breasts. "I am here to serve you in anyway I can if you know what I mean."

That's when I saw her green pendant then lower in front of my gaze as I was now focused on it. I looked up and she simply smiled at me. "Wait... are you talking about your hypnotism?" I asked warily. She chuckled madly as she lifted it up. "Oh the look on your face was priceless! But yeah I have offered a few people a chance to be hypnotized. I wanna help out too. So many others are trying their best to help so I figured I'd help everyone by offering my services." I sighed as I tried not to get angry. After all she was wanting to help in her own twisted way. "I appreciate the offer but I'm not interested in hypnotism." She shrugged as she placed the pendant on the bed's headboard. "Well then if that service isn't appealing... then maybe this one will." She whispered as I felt her hand suddenly tug and my pant's button and zipper.

"That was it!' My mind screamed at me. I bolted up, pushing her off me before I rushed to the door, unlocked it, and pushed out. Little did I realize she had ran after me and tackled me to the ground. I flipped around with her above and then I heard someone clear their throat. Me and Evelyn darted our heads to the left and saw Luca and most of the other students staring down at us. They were either blushing, glaring, or nodding at us with devious smiles when I noticed my pants were still undone. I quickly crawled out from under her and redid my pants, blushing madly. "Um I know it is cliche to say this but it isn't what it looks like." I told them all but I could tell that none of them would believe me.

"You are so disgusting Kai!" Shana shouted. Evelyn was laying on her side staring up to her. "Jealous sweetie?" Shana growled out in frustration and disgust as she stomped madly to her room.

I then heard a dorm room door open behind me and saw Jayden peek his head out of Helen's room. "I ensured nothing dangerous is in your room. You can come in if you'd like." He called over to Helen. She simply nodded as she went to her room and closed it.

Everyone else just continued staring at me with the same looks. "Wait please believe me! I swear I didn't do anything!" I begged them. But most everyone was going into their rooms. I sighed in defeat as I saw Evelyn pick herself up and almost close the door. "My services are still open to you Kai. Just come knocking if you ever require them." She winked to me before going into her room. I shuddered as I began making my way to my room. That's when I saw Luca leaning against his door staring at me. I looked away feeling absolute shame that everyone saw me in such a disrespectful situation. "You say you didn't anything with her right?" He asked. I looked back to him and nodded. "Yeah... I'm still... a virgin." I confessed. He smiled. "You say you didn't then I'll believe you. I believe you more than I believe that bloated bimbo. Besides I am too." Luca then turned and entered his room. That made me relax a bit. 'At least Luca believed me and even made things equal between us by telling me he was a virgin too. Not like I assumed he wasn't but he didn't seem like he goes around and sleeps with a lot of girls. Unlike Evelyn who completely gives off that vibe.' I quickly shook that off and went into my room.

 ** _*Ding Dong Bing Bong*_**

The nighttime announcement played again and I felt so exhausted after everything today that as soon as my head hit the pillow I was out! Again despite everything that happened I knew I would sleep well tonight but little to my realization someone's night would forever be disturbed.

 **Day 4**

 ** _*Ding Dong Bing Bong*_**

Once again the same morning announcement woke me up and I soon dragged myself out. I began dreading today after how everyone perceived what happened between me and Evelyn last night. Now they thought I was probably a complete stuck-up tool who flaunts his fame and his dick around. Well all except for Luca and Evelyn since Luca would believe me and Evelyn since she knows what really happened.

Anyway I decided to take a quick shower before heading out. After 15 minutes of getting myself ready I made my way to the cafeteria and soon noticed some of the other gathered around the entrance. Ollie, Paul, Mikayla, and Shana looked like they were in deep conversation. "Hey guys. What's going on?"

They looked at me but Shana humphed at me and looked away. Paul and Ollie didn't look to happy to see me either but Mikayla rolled her eyes at them before looking at me. "We were just trying to figure out why some of us are late."

"Well I was showering this morning because..." "Because you needed to clean yourself after throwing yourself on that cow uttered slut." Shana interrupted. "Would you knock it off. With the way he reacted I think she approached him." Shana laughed. "Still doesn't mean they didn't do it." Mikayla shook her head at her before looking back. "Anyways that would explain why you were late but that leaves us five people short; Jayden, Melinda, Damian, Helen, and Luca."

"Have you checked their dorms?" I asked. "Yes but no one answered. Unless they are still asleep or in their bathrooms they aren't there. Well Helen isn't a surprise. She refused to eat any dinner last night before going to bed." Mikayla answered.

I shrugged at her. "Well how about we try again? Surely they'd be awake or out of the bathroom by now if I am." Shana immediately raised her hand. I'll check the girls side so that Mr. Red Rocket doesn't try anything again." She then took off like the analogy she compared to me. I rubbed my temples feeling a headache begin to form. Mikayla sighed rubbing her head as well. "Well nothing we an do about her. With her on the girl's side of the hall how about you go check on the boys, Kai?" She suggested. "Sure. Hey if we go together then it will be even faster."

"I'll go." Ollie offered. I blinked at her. "Oh uh sure! Why not!" Before I could realize it she had suddenly taken a hold of my hand and began pulling me back to the dorms. We soon made it to Luca's room since his was the first room on the boy's side. I went to knock but then the door opened and Luca stepped out. He jumped a little when he noticed Ollie and I standing right there and with me about to knock on his face. "Hey guys. What's up?" Ollie was the one to speak up. "There were a few people late for breakfast. We came to check up on you." Luca smiled. "Oh yeah sorry. I was having difficulty with my hair this morning. It just decided it wasn't going to be working with me today." Me and Luca laughed but Ollie just stared at us. The two of us cleared our throats after that awkward moment before she grabbed my hand and dragged me off again. Luca quickly followed suit.

"Ollie, what are you doing?" I questioned her. "We're going to the next room." I sighed out in annoyance. "Well I can walk on my own and I would like my hand back please." But she just ignored me and Luca couldn't help but chuckle which I glared at him for. We passed my room and stopped by Damian's room. Just before Ollie could knock...

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" We heard an ear piercing scream come from down the hall. Not just one scream but two. A boy and girl to be more precise. "What was that!?" I shouted. "Never mind that! Someone could be hurt! Let's go!" Luca shouted back as he and Ollie and I quickly darted to where the screams came from.

We saw one of the dorm rooms open as we rushed in. And what I witnessed was a scene more disturbing than any reproduction a horror movie could pull off. I didn't even noticed Shana and Damian trembling in front of us on their knees. ***Play youtube .com** **/watch?v=W4kxEAVJjSM You already know why ):D***

Helen was laying on her back on top of her bed with her eyes shot open and blood drenched under her head on the pillow. But what made it worse was also seeing Jayden lying on his face on the floor in front of the bed with blood pooled under his head and a bloody knife resting near him. I felt my knee grow flimsy as I fell back and caught myself on the door frame. I noticed Luca looking absolutely mortified from the grotesque scene and Ollie had her hand covering her mouth from the shock.

 _ ***Bing Bong Ding Bong***_

We heard a different tune play from the morning and nighttime announcements as Monokuma appeared on the monitor in Helen's room. "Everyone please gather 'round in Helen Kibby's dormitory! A body has been found!" The monitor then shut off but immediately after that...

 _ ***Bing Bong Ding Bong***_

The same bell rang again and the monitor turned on again. "Everyone please gather 'round in Helen Kibby's dormitory! A body has been found!" And once again the screen shut off for good this time. "What... was that?" Shana asked trembling like she was having a seizure. To be honest I think most of us were. "It was an announcement... for the discovery of a body." Ollie answered. Damian looked back at us and shot to his feet. "Hold up man. Hold up! But that announcement played twice! Are you telling me that... their..."

"Dead." Luca finished. I gasped in horror as did everything in my power to stop the nausea I felt rush out of my stomach. "Helen and Jayden have been... ... ... murdered?"

 **Chapter 1: Lending a Despairing Hand**

 _ **Deadly Life**_

 _Holy shit! The first murder is also the double murder! Bet you weren't expecting that! But I bet you saw the character deaths coming right? Let me know what you thought of this first part of the chapter and give me your thoughts on who the blackened might be. I hope you all despair to know what happens next time! Puhuhuhuhuhu! See you later!_


	5. Chapter 1: Deadly Life & Investigation

"Helen and Jayden have been... ... ... murdered?" The unwelcomed silence that followed my obviously unnecessary question hung heavily on our hearts and minds as we heard many footsteps rushing toward us. Soon everyone else was standing outside the room trying to see past the first five witnesses.

"Would y'all move outta the way. We can't see!" Willie shouted a mixture of annoyance and worry in his voice. The five of us slowly picked ourselves up and moved into the hall as we tried collecting ourselves. As we were doing so the terrorised screams and cries soon began resonating from the others. Mikayla, who had a bit of throw up dripping down the corner of her mouth, walked out holding Sienna close as she sobbed uncontrollably. Some of the others came out looking just as mortified while the last weren't fazed at all by the sight of our two deceased friends.

"So someone has already made the first move huh? Well that progressed much faster than I predicted." Paul said with a shrug. Melinda however was smiling as she looked around at us. "Well I am actually grateful. Now the fun has really begun."

When I heard that I looked over at her. "Are you kidding me? Two of our friends are dead. How can you be so calm and continue talking about how this twisted aituation we are in is some kind of game?" I asked her. I made it known I was upset with her but I also sounded weak since I was still shooken up from seeing Helen and Jayden in a terrible state.

Melinda obviously noticed that and chuckled. "Oh you sad creature. Don't you realize this is a game? Why else would Monokuma call it the _killing_ game?" She asked rhetorically. Paul nodded as he approached me. "I agree. After all now the culprit, one of us, will be battling against us to win this game." "What? What do you mean?" Luca asked in surprise. Paul sighed as he took out his e-handbook. "The first regulation dumbass. _"Students must remain within the school premises and are not allowed to leave without the mandatory requirements."_ This means there is more to leaving here than just killing someone."

Suddenly Monokuma popped up near the door looking over at Paul happily. "Yes indeed! Now comes the time for you spotless to try and pin down the blackened with an investigation and class trial!" He hollered out making most of us look at him in confusion. Soon Monokuma began explaining what the class trial was, how it worked, and what awaited us if we chose the correct suspect or an incorrect suspect. He then went on how it wasn't gonna be written out so it won't waste anyone's time reading an explanation they have already heard. That confused us even more as I thought of something.

"Say what if you are the blackened?" I asked curiously. He lightly giggled as our e-handbooks beeped. We all brought them out to see a new rule added. _Monokuma is NOT allowed to interfere with a murder but can limit the students as they explore the school._ Looks like he just answered that question. "Now then in order for this class trial to be fair I need to give you all these since I highly doubt any one of you knows about examining dead bodies. So I present to you... DA-DA-DA-DAAAA! THE MONOKUMA FILES! These little babies tell you a lot about the victims such as time and cause of death! Everything else you'll have to figure out on your own. Oh by the way whenever you get your Monokuma Files a cool camera feature on you e-handbook unlocks so you can take pictures of evidence you find or record your classmates' testimonies and statements. Now get to it! You don't have long until the class trial begins so investigate and find the killer! Or don't and suffer the punishment with everyone else."

All of this was being shoved at me and I couldn't help it as I collapsed to my knees. Luca bent down and grabbed me by the shoulders. "Hey man, don't lose your cool on me now." My head lifted up as my shaky eyesight met his also shaky gaze. "But how can I not? Two of our friends are dead and we have to find the killer lurking among us. This is just too insane."

"I know man but it's just like Monokuma said if we don't then we all die. You certainly don't want that. None of us do. It's our only chance of surviving this but it shouldn't be our only reason." My eyebrows furrowed as I tried to grasp what he meant by that. Luckily he continued so I wouldn't have to guess. "I mean the motive. Monokuma gave it to us to kill but we can turn it around in our favor. Let's use his motive to kill as our motive to live. After all we want to know what hapened to our loved ones right?" He had a point. I was so desperate to find out what happened to Terry but that didn't mean I was about to kill someone. But if I use that motive to push me to find the answer in the way I want I know I can make it. It sucks that I can't bring back those who've already lost their lives but I can ensure their killer doesn't get away so we can live on for them. Soon I smiled at Luca before slowly nodding.

He almost seemed to beam at that as he patted my left shoulder. "I knew I could believe in you. Besides out of everyone here you can figure this out! After all you've made numerous appearances for detective shows and horror movies like CSI and Law & Order." I then smiled in appreciation but shook my head. "No. I may have studied those shows to get a better grasp of my character whether it was a criminal, victim, or suspect and I may have picked up tricks used for the investigation and deduction scenes but that doesn't make me an ultimate detective." Luca just blinked at me before he began laughing. "Well it's not like you're doing this alone. I wanna help find the killer so we can make it out alive. Also trust me. An Ultimate Detective would be way overrated anyway." Soon enough I had joined him in laughter and after a brief moment we soon nodded to each other and stood back up.

"So then I guess we better get started. We'll need to go over the crime scene for clues and evidence and ask around for people's accounts to see if anyone can provide useful information." I said, unintentionally already sounding like a detective. Luca quickly chimed in and replied, "But first I think it might be good to look over the Monokuma Files so we can have a better understanding of the crime." I quickly nodded. "Oh that's true too. Alright then let's get this done!"

 **INVESTIGATION START!**

'Now I need to start by reading the details the Monokuma Files share.' I thought as I grabbed the first one. I tapped the screen as it turned on. I began reading. _"The victim is Helen Kibby, the Ultimate Motivational Speaker. She was found in her own dorm room. The cause of death is a stab to the back of the head. The time of death is around 10:30 pm. There is also major bruising on her shoulders and the top of her chest."_ I hummed to myself. 'There's quite a bit of info that's good to know but not much to go off of. I should see how Jayden's file holds up.' I quickly switched them out and tapped on the second file's screen. _"The victim is Jayden Hutchinson, the Ultimate Bodyguard. He was found in Helen's dorm room. The cause of death is a slice to his throat. The time of death is around 10:30 pm. There are also slight markings on his right arm."_ I felt the same about Jayden's file just as much as Helen's yet something felt strange to me as I looked over them both again.

Luca saw my state of confusion and came up to me. "What's up?" I showed him both files. "Look at this. Both of their times of deaths were the same. Someone had to have killed them either at the exact same time or in quick succession if it doesn't have an exact time on either one." He looked thoughtfully with his finger on his chin. "That is strange isn't it."

Truth Bullet: Monokuma File #1 and Monokuma File #2 Obtained

"Well let's go investigate inside now." I suggested. Luca only nodded as we headed back inside. I saw Willie glaring off at nothing and I quickly approached him. "Hey Willie? What's wrong? Aren't you gonna help with the investigation?" He only looked over and shook his head. "No need. I already know who did it. I'll flush the vermin out at that class trial." That was all he said before he walked out and headed for his dorm. "What was that?" Luca asked me but I just shrugged. "I haven't the slightest clue. But if he's not gonna help out then we can't worry about that."

We turned around and headed to Jayden's body at the foot of the bed since it was closer. I felt myself cringe at his body lying there. Luca bent down and gently touched his head. "Did you want to see the wound?" He asked. I blinked at him. "Are you really gonna touch his body?" "Well I have dealt with gruesome injuries not only for myself but my buddies too and we patched them up before so I am use to the blood and stuff but I am nervous touching someone who is dead. But we need to do this thoroughly to make sure we don't miss any important detail. So I'm willing to do it if you can inspect the body." I admired his courage to touch a dead body for our sake. How could I refuse? I simply nodded as he nodded back before he gently cradled Jayden's head into his hands and slowly lifted it up.

I got down on my hands and knees to look at him. Sure movie effects and special make up can make fake injuries look and even feel real but it still didn't compare to the real deal. I saw the slice went across the entirety of the front of his throat and was pretty deep too. I noticed his eyes showed signs of agony in his final moments with one eye shot open and the other eye narrowed in pain. I recalled what the Monokuma File said about his right arm having marks and I looked at it to see it did have multiple thin indents on them like something vice gripped him. Also his right hand had a splatter of blood on it. Most likely from grabbing his throat when it was cut open. That was all there was to find on his body yet I felt like I didn't find a single clue to help.

Status of Jayden's Body Obtained

We soon put Jayden's back the way we found him as I looked over at the knife laying next to him. This was obviously the murder weapon with the blood covering the blade and little blood splatters on the top and end of the handle but not anywhere in the center. "Looks like that's where the culprit got blood on their hand and why it's not on the handle." Luca pointed out. 'That's was the only logical reason the blood wasn't there so I guess there's no need to dwell on this... right?'

Bloody Knife Obtained

After that we walked over to the bed and Helen's body. I felt a growl resonate in me. 'Who could do this to these fantastic people? Who was so important that two overachieving Ultimates such as Jayden and Helen had to die?' I realized my anger was gonna blind me as I slowly breathed in and out to calm myself. I soon approached Helen and Luca walked on the opposite side of the bed. Turned out we weren't the only ones examining her as Mikayla was next to me when I came up. "So you guys came." She whispered as she wiped at her red eyes. I smiled softly as I patted her. "Of course we did. We want to find out who did this too." She then looked to me with sad eyes and said something that took us off guard. "Unless one of you did it."

"Are you suspecting us, Mikayla?" Luca asked concerned. "Well we have to suspect everyone right? I swear it's nothing personal but it's just to be safe you know." She explained but I quickly cut her off as I stepped back. "Hey I get it. It's good to be cautious. Keeps your focus sharp and aware. But you should have some people to believe in. After all it's better when we work together." Mikayla made no comment but soon smiled as she nodded happily. "Then I'm gonna trust you! Oh and you too Luca." Luca seemed to droop down at that. "That didn't sound too reassuring." We giggled at him before Mikayla allowed us to join her in looking over Helen's body.

After a few minutes we saw the bruises on the front of her chest and shoulders like the file said but besides the wide, pained eyes we didn't find anything else of note. The only thing left was to check the wound the file stated was on the back of her head. Not a surprise since the blood was pooled on the pillow underneath her head. Luca gently grabbed the sides of her head and lifted it up but out of nowhere the pillow goes up with her, stuck to the back of it. "What in the world? Has the blood crusted the pillow to her?" I asked bewildered. Since Luca's hands were preoccupied with holding her head up Mikayla took it upon herself to try and pry it off but we heard her gasp. We both then looked behind the pillow to see a knife handle sticking out.

"There's another knife?" Luca exclaimed. "But I thought that knife on the floor was the murder weapon!" Mikayla remarked as we looked back and forth between the knives. "Looks like that isn't the case." I stated before I began thinking. 'Why are there two separate knives and why is one stabbed through the pillow as well as Helen's head? What is the point of that?'

Status of Helen's Body and Knife in Pillow Obtained

"Well let's not focus on this too long. We don't know how much longer we have until the class trial starts." Luca reminded us. I nodded mindlessly as I was looking at the bed Helen was laying on. "What is it?" Luca asked. "Well it's just that the bed sheets are wrinkled up." He chuckled at me and slightly shook his head. "Kai, I understand you want to find any possible clues that can help us but you shouldn't think every little thing has some deep meaning behind it." Mikayla quickly jumped in and added, "The bed is most likely messed up because Helen struggled against her attacker." I couldn't help but shake a weird feeling I had off. I know Luca and Mikayla meant well but I felt like I couldn't ignore this so I took a picture of it on my handbook as evidence.

Wrinkled Bed Sheets

I soon looked over at Damian and Shana outside the room talking to one another. I looked back to Luca. "Say do you mind if you keep looking around here? I'm gonna talk to Shana and Damian since they were the first witnesses of the bodies." Luca gave me a thumbs up. "You got it man! I'll get you if I find anything!" With that being said we parted ways as I stepped out of the room and Luca remained inside.

Shana and Damian saw me approach them as Damian gave me a weak smile while Shana glared at me for a second before she looked away saddened."Hey guys. Mind if ask you guys a few things?" I beckoned them as I got closer. Shana replied but didn't look at me. "Are you suspecting us for this?" I shook my head. "No not really. I mean it is strange you two found the bodies and so the others will likely believe you might have done it, but I wanna believe in you guys. So please tell me how you found the bodies after you left us." I pleaded. Damian looked to her as if he was also begging with his eyes.

Shana sighed before looking more so in my direction but not at me. "It was right when I ran ahead to check on Melinda and Helen in their dorms. I was done checking on Melinda, who never responded, and was about to make my way to Helen's room before Damian popped out of his room.

 _"Hey Shana!" Damian called out to her. Shana looked back and growled lightly. "What is it?" Damian slowly removed his fedora as he stood in front of her. "Listen I just wanted to apologize about what I said yesterday. It was rude of me and I hope we can make things alright between us." After a second Shana sighed. "Fine. I guess I can forgive you. By the way you seen Luca, Melinda, Helen, or Jayden?" He shook his head. "Nope. Just came outta my room for the day just now." With that said Shana walked off to Helen's room._

 _She noticed Damian had followed her as she knocked on the door and even tried opening it but found it locked. He then wrapped his arm around her shoulders out of nowhere and said, "Just so you know I don't mind a girl who likes to get dirty. Besides having a dirty mind can always be beautiful too." Shana giggled cutely before jabbing him in the gut with her elbow. "Don't count on earning any brownie points with me." She growled._

 _*Click* The two then turned towards Helen's door as Shana stepped up and twisted the knob open. "Guess Helen's wants me to come in." She said as she and Damian opened the door and stepped in only to find true despair._

I hummed as Shana finished telling me what they witnessed. "So they door just somehow unlocked itself?" She nodded. "Yeah. It was freaky. There was no one inside the room and with Helen and Jayden dead that door shouldn't have suddenly unlocked like that." Then from our of the blue Monokuma popped up and giggled with his paws covering his mouth. "That was me." We looked down at him in surprise. "It was you who unlocked the door to Helen's room?" I questioned him. He simply nodded as he answered. "Yes indeed. This class trial must proceed so I unlock any doors that can lead you to certain clues to make things fair during the class trial. And besides I loved watching the despair on your faces from encountering the two dead bodies!"

I felt my eyes roll as I had hit the end button on the recording feature. This info may come in handy later on.

Shana's Account Obtained and Monokuma's Account Obtained

Shana and Damian soon wandered off to try and investigate on their own. That's when I heard Luca calling out to me from the dorm room. I quickly ran back inside to see him standing on a chair next to a tall bookshelf that was filled up with quote reference books, motivational novels, and human psychology textbooks. Not a surprise for the Ultimate Motivational Speaker "What is it Luca?"

He looked down to me to make sure I was able to see before he stepped back a little. I looked closer at the shelf his hand was resting on and I felt my blood turn cold. I saw an arrowhead sticking out from a very narrow opening between two of the books. "Is that and arrow?" I mindlessly asked. "It's not just an arrow." Luca remarked as he pulled the packed shelf down by removing all the books to reveal an entire crossbow with an arrow loaded in.

"Did the killer try to assassinate them with this?" I asked. Luca shrugged. "I dunno man. But I also found this." He then pointed right behind the crossbow to show a hole in the bookcase. "Can I see that?" I asked. Luca only stepped down off the chair and allowed me to get up. I dipped my head below the shelf and moved the crossbow to the side. I then peeked at the hole to see it wasn't just a hole in the back of the bookcase but the wall too. A hole that I could see the next room in just barely because there was a picture frame blocking most of my view of the other side. 'This hole connects Helen's room to the room left of her's. It is quite small and it is perfectly carved out. I wonder.'

Loaded Crossbow Obtained and Hole in Wall Obtained

"What is it Kai?" Luca asked. "I think I might be onto something but we'll need to go somewhere first." I replied to him as I stepped down. "Where's that?" He questioned puzzled. "The school store. I have a feeling our killer may have gotten these weapons from there." He looked at me abashed. "But isn't the room next to us..." "Let's get going." I interrupted him as I began walking. Luca looked flustered at me not answering him but I felt my intuition telling me something was way off and that the school store was where I needed to go.

We quickly rushed down the hallway and Luca rushed past me when I got stopped by someone stepping in front of me. It was Paul. "I was in the library all night with her. Neither of us left and neither of us went to sleep."

Paul's Account Obtained

I stared at him taken aback by that sudden statement before he walked off and I continued making my way to the school store. Luca was seen around the corner as he saw me approach. "Hey man where did you disappear too?" Luca asked perturbed. I sighed. "Well Paul just popped out of no where and spoke to me for a second. It was rather strange." Luca shook his head. "Forget that jerk! Check out the school store doors!" The way he sounded rushed made me feel nervous again. I walked around the corner of the hallway to see the doors of the school store slightly open. Not only that, I saw not only the lock and chain Jayden and Helen put on but the door handles were completely torn off!

"How did this happen? Who broke off the lock?" Luca asked in astonishment. "I have no clue but whoever did has to be our culprit! This is the only place where they could have gotten the weapons." Luca looked at me and scratched his cheek. "Well yeah but maybe it wasn't from here. Maybe it..." But I once again interrupted him by going inside. I heard him growl in annoyance as I went in and he followed suit.

School Store Broken Lock Obtained

When I walked in it was just like how Tommy and Willie described. I saw thousands of knick knacks lining the walls and inside the glass counter in front of us but mixed throughout was a variety of deadly weapons and material that could be used kill someone easily. I looked around and soon saw a few knives in the bottom of the glass counter in the back corner propped up on a rack. It had the label "MTech Xtreme military hunting knife" on the rack. There were five slots altogether but two slots were empty. There was also a big empty space next to those and on the other side of that space was arrows. "Just as I thought."

School Store Weapons Obtained

"Just as you thought?" I heard a voice ask from behind me. I turned back and saw Tommy walking in. I nodded to him. "Yeah I believe this is where our killer got the weapons from." Tommy tipped his head in confusion. "Weapons?"

"I'll explain later." I told him. Suddenly a thought had popped into my head as I looked back to him. "Um Tommy? Can I ask you something?" Tommy looked a bit shock at my sudden change in tone but nodded. "Yeah what do you need?" I sighed as I felt a bit of shame rush up in my throat as I spoke the words. "Is there any chance someone who has seen the school store's inside could be the perpetrator?" Tommy smiled as he nodded in understanding. "Ah I see now. I'm a potential suspect now aren't I?" He confirmed. I looked down slightly rubbing my arm awkwardly. "I'm sorry I didn't mean anything by it." He laughed a little at me. "No please don't worry. I am more than happy to help if it'll help you out. Besides remaining suspicious to all possibilities is good. Anyway yes me and Willie did have a good look around before we came back and I know the only other people who went in were Helen and Jayden when they grabbed the chain and lock to secure the doors here."

I jerked my head towards him in shock. "Wait how do you know Jayden and Helen locked the school store? I was the only one who actually saw them." He chuckled at me before continuing. "Well it's because Jayden told me. Not just me he told everyone else about the school store being locked up. So those who were at our meeting and those who were not were all made aware that this dangerous place was inaccessible. I guess you didn't know that because he never mentioned it to you since you already saw it."

'That explanation felt too important to forget. Good thing I was already recording his testimony.' I thought as I ended it.

Tommy's Account Obtained

 ** _*Ding Dong Bing Bong*_**

Then from out of the blue a familiar bell rung out as me, Luca, and Tommy set our sights on the monitor in the room. Monokuma appeared on it. Big shocker. "Alrighty kiddos! I have decided that you've explored around long enough. Besides I've grown bored watching you just walk and talk. It's just like how things were before your friends died. YAWN! So it's time for the class trial to begin! Please gather in the library immediately! Also remember anyone who is marked absent will remain absent forever! Puhuhuhu! See you soon!"

With that the monitor clicked off as I felt myself tense up. "What? But we might still have something we need to find!" I complained but Luca just patted my back hard making me lose my balance slightly. "Don't worry man. I believe in you. Now we should hurry. Don't wanna be marked absent now do we?" He had a strong reasoning their. I can't delay things for my favor. Not with that killer bear having power over us. So regrettably I left the school store and began making my way to the library as Monokuma requested. I walked in and saw everyone else had already gathered.

"You're late." Paul growled. I narrowed my eyes in confusion. "How am I late? It's been like two minutes since the announcement and Luca was right in front of me."

"You were the last to arrive. Therefore you are late. Don't question me." Paul demanded as he turned away and walked from that conversation. Luca shook his head at him before shrugging at me.

Brenda looked around annoyed. "Alright Monokuma! We're here! Where do we go?" She hollered out.

"M-Maybe he only brought us here... t-t-to ki-*hic*-kill us." Sienna whimpered out through ragged breaths. Mikayla quickly rushed to her and quickly told her to calm down by taking big breaths of air. After a few seconds Sienna was more calm than before at least but still shook like a hairless Chihuahua.

"Well I can't wait to expose the blackened! I just cannot forgive such a disgusting crime!" Willie growled. Melinda simply chuckled as he glared daggers at her but she gave no reply.

"But seriously where is Monokuma? He's been making us wait for a while now." Damian noted.

Marcel quickly raised his hand. Evelyn sighed at him. "Sweetie, just because we are at a school doesn't mean you need to raise your hand. Just tell us what's on your tiny mind." He quickly withdrew his hand and spoke up. "Well what if someone killed Monokuma?" He suggested. We all stared blankly at him as he looked around at us. "What?"

"I'm amazed how you weren't the first one to die." Shana told him.

"He's here." Ollie suddenly said. Sure enough we saw Monokuma pop up on top of a bookshelf with spotlights flashed on him and colorful confetti popping out at him. I shivered at that as I was reminded of Monokuma's prank. 'Did he do that on purpose?' I wondered with a groan. Luca saw me cringe up. "Hey man what's wrong?" I looked away with a blush on my cheeks. "Nothing." I simply replied.

His voice echoed down from the 20 foot shelf. "Hey guys! Glad you all waited for my dramatic entrance. Now we need to get to the trial grounds so we can things a rolling!" He shouted enthusiastically. Paul stepped up towards the bookcase with a look that could kill as it was directed at the bear. "You better have a good reason for wasting my time." Monokuma wasn't fazed by Paul as he chuckled lightly. "I was just getting the trial ready for you all. Now let's get going!"

"Aren't we doing the class trial here?" Ollie asked. He simply looked at he baffled. "No way Jose!" "It's Ollie." She replied blankly as Monokuma continued ignoring her. "There's no way we can hold a thrilling class trial in some boring, smelly library. This is just the place to enter the trial grounds from. Now let's call upon a volunteer to open the door to your destiny!"

Monokuma hummed as he tapped his chin, looking over us as he suddenly pointed straight at me. "You! Kai Brugger, you will open the entrance from here on out or until you die!" I looked at Monokuma in surprise. "What? Why me?" "Don't question your headmaster! I gave you this responsibility now do it! Just come to this bookshelf and open it!" With that he puffed into a cloud of dust and was gone when it settled.

I saw everyone's staring gazes on me as I gulped nervously before making my way to the bookshelf Monokuma was sitting on. I looked around and found a very large and rather obvious book titled, "Secret Passageways For Dummies". I tried pulling it out but found that it could only be pulled out part of the way. Suddenly it reeled back making me jump away from it as we all heard the shelf creak. Soon about five shelves on the bookcase began lowering into the ground to reveal a passageway with a small hallway which lead to a cage-like elevator that looked like it was from those old hotels. Everyone stared at the elevator nervously but we all knew we had to get on. Soon enough everyone began making their way in, filing onto the elevator one by one. Once we were all aboard the doors closed as we began our descent down into the school grounds. Literally.

I felt the tense air thicken the longer we were inside the elevator. I could feel many eyes burning into me as they stared at me or at someone else. We all had our eyes on someone we thought was suspicious. After what felt like a decade had gone by, it finally came to a stop and we saw the trial grounds Monokuma had prepared. It was surprisingly cool to look at. It did have a court room feel with wooden benches surrounding sixteen almost futuristic looking podiums and a quite large throne seated nearby. There were red curtains lining the walls and on Monokuma's throne as the animatronic bear appeared on it.

"Alright everyone thank you for coming! Now then let us get things started! Please go up to your assigned podium so we can get this class trial underway!" He shouted so gleefully it was making my skin crawl with goosebumps. We all quickly searched around and soon stood at our personal podiums. I looked up to see Monokuma on the other side of me with his throne resting between two podiums from my point of view. I made note of who was where. Going clockwise from Monokuma's left was Jayden, Ollie, Luca, Evelyn, Paul, Mikayla, Damian, Sienna, Me, Brenda, Willie, Melinda, Marcel, Helen, Tommy, and Shana ending on Monokuma's right. I also saw that Jayden and Helen's podiums had grayed out portraits of them with red X's on them to indicate they were no longer with us. Of course Monokuma would to that to us!

My mind suddenly flashed back to them. Helen Kibby, the Ultimate Motivational Speaker, she wanted more than anything was everyone to get along and be friends. She wanted to help every single one of us to keep positive and get out together. Jayden Hutchinson, the Ultimate Bodyguard, he promised to protect everyone no matter what. He was willing to put his life on the line to ensure that at least even one person made it out alive. Yet despite their selfless personalities... One of us killed them? Someone betrayed us? Who could do this and why? Who was so important that two outstanding people had to die? I don't want to believe it but it all felt so hopeless.

Now it seemed the stage was set and the curtain lifted as the main act was about to begin. In this deathly game, in this deathly life. This deathly lie, this deathly truth, this deathly deception, this deathly class trial!

* * *

 _Hey guys! I am so stoked to be sharing this with you guys! Do you have any clue as to who the culprit is or any thoughts on potential suspects? Please tell me how I'm doing! I really want to know how good you think this story is and how you think it's gonna be! I will be working on the class trial portion of the chapter ASAP so please tell me how you're enjoying it or not (Hopefully you are)! Until next time see ya later you Remnants of Despair! Puhuhuhuhu!_


	6. Chapter 1: Class Trial Part 1

**Class Trial In Session**

 **All Rise!**

"Now then allow me to start this off with a quick explanation of the class trial!" Monokuma started. "During this time you will present your evidence and argue over who you believe the killer is and vote for whodunit! If the majority vote is correct then only the blackened will be punished. However if the majority is is incorrect then I will punish everyone besides the blackened and they will get to graduate and leave to the outside world scot free." Monokuma explained.

I looked at the others with a worried expression. "Do you guys think that it's really true? Did one of us really kill Jayden and Helen?" I heard Monokuma give off that signature laugh of his. "Well duh! I already made it clear that I can't interfere with your school lives directly but I can make minor adjustments to fit for everyone's needs. Which means that the killer responsible for two deaths is one of you! It took me by surprise no doubt about that but oh how I fill with joy after seeing two bodies here instead of the third chapter!"

I looked over at Monokuma with the strangest look of confusion. "Huh? What do you mean "third chapter"?" I asked.

Monokuma gasped. "Oh did I say that? Meh. Just don't worry about that. Right now focus on who the killer lurking among you is."

"Well there no way in hell I'm the killer!" Shana shouted.

"I would never even think of killing someone so it isn't me either!" Damian shouted as well.

Paul shook his head. "But that statement could very much be a lie for all we know. After all someone was provoked by their motive because of their beliefs. All our personal motives and what can drive us to kill will never be understood by anyone else. So saying you can't think of doing so or just saying you didn't do it is futile."

"I agree. Saying things without a way to solidify them is pointless. We need to discuss things in order to figure out who is the culprit." Mikayla added. "So with that said I think we should first discuss who the killer could be and who could not."

"We don't need to." Willie said suddenly.

"Huh?" Mikayla was caught off guard by that as Willie held his fist up. "I know who the killer is."

"B-But we haven't even talked about anything? H-How could you know alr-ready?" Sienna asked confused.

"Simple. There's only one among us that has threatened our deceased partners. One who had taken a liking to our situation and has made things more tense with everything she has said." Willie answered.

I looked around the room to see who he was talking about before my eyes settled to someone a few seats down from my left. "You're talking about Melinda right Willie?"

"You betcha! There's no doubt she's our killer." Willie growled. Melinda simply chuckled. "What a false accusation."

"It ain't false! It's so obvious!" Willie growled.

 _"But... but guys... if we don't then Monokuma will win and one of us might kill. Do you want that? Does anyone here want to die?" Melinda then stepped up and grabbed her by her collar and pulled her close. "You better knock it off Miss President! If you keep trying to be a leader and make us do what you want, I guarantee that the first one to die will be you!"_

 _"Now hold it. Just because you are a woman and a classmate of mine does not mean I will allow you to go running amuck killing an innocent life." Jayden growled at her. She simply looked up at him with a finger to her lip. "You'd be fun to hunt. You could actually be challenging to beat with you being so stacked."_

"You threatened Helen just the other day by saying she'd die because of how much leadership she was putting out and there's dear ole Jayden. You said at the beginning of this game that you'd love to hunt him down in this game because he would give ya a challenge. Not to mention being the Ultimate Huntress means you kill for a living. It has to be you!" He pointed accusingly at her.

"As I said that is such a false accusation. You have no real proof I did it." Melinda giggled at him.

"Actually we do." Luca suddenly spoke up.

"Luca?" I asked in confusion.

Luca looked directly at me. "Kai, I know you didn't want to talk about it during the investigation but we can't let such an important clue go unnoticed."

"Important clue? That points me as the killer?" Melinda asked innocently.

He looked back to her. "As a matter of fact yes."

Monokuma then jumped in. "Now's a good time as any but please place your handbooks in the slot in front of you. This will allow you to not only place attendance for you being here but you may access your pictures and videos and show them off to everyone."

Luca nodded at Monokuma. "Please take a look at this." He then placed his e-handbook on his podium's small screen in front of him and then a projected image appeared on all our screens. It was the photo he took of the bookcase. More specifically the hole in the wall and bookcase. "I found this on the bookcase in Helen's room. There's a hole in the wall that is big enough for someone's hand to fit through and it comes from the room on the left. That room... belongs to Melinda. It's organized by last names and Jones is right before Kibby and no other girls has a last name with J or K so we know it's your room. But that's not the only thing I found. In between the books I saw an arrowhead that was attached to an entire arrow and loaded into a crossbow, hidden behind the books and right in front of the hole." Suddenly Melinda's podium turned red and went to the center of the circle our seat formed. I could bet that she was in what I could only assume was the hot seat.

"Aha! We got you now! This will undoubtedly prove you're guilty you venomous rattlesnake!" Willie shouted happily.

I had my hand to my chin as I thought to myself, 'But can we really be sure about that? I understand it is important to talk about but I need to refute anything that might be wrong.'

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Loaded Truth Bullets: Hole in Wall, Loaded Crossbow, and Bloody Knife

"Admit it! You're the culprit!" Willie shouted.

"Do you have any proof? I bet you **can't tie me with anything**!" Melinda laughed at him.

"After what Luca testified I believe I can! You're room and Helen's were connected through that hole in the wall and you had the crossbow set up in Helen's room. Then all you had to do was wait until the two let their guard down and **you easily shot them with that crossbow**!"

I felt my body jump at that moment like a bullet of knowledge about the crossbow was being shot at his words. "YOU'VE GOT THAT WRONG!"

 **Counter!**

"Sorry Willie but I don't think that's right." I said to him.

He glared at me. "And why can't that be? She could have easily shot that crossbow from her room."

"Yes she could have but she didn't! That crossbow was never shot in the first place." By this point everyone's handbooks were in the slot as I loaded the crossbow picture up. "We found the crossbow with the arrow still loaded into it and when we searched around we never found any other arrows in the room which indicated that there were none shot and the only arrow brought there with the crossbow was still in the crossbow. Also there's another reason why the crossbow can't be the murder weapon."

I then brought out the Monokuma Files. "It states that both of them died from similar wounds," Then Luca took over the topic and loaded up the bloody knife photo. "And there's even a bloody knife on the ground next to Jayden's body but the crossbow and arrow are both clean of any blood."

"W-Well that may be true but she still can't deny that she didn't do it! Just the fact there was a hole in her wall is very suspicious." Willie retaliated.

Melinda shook her head. "No it isn't since I didn't even know about that hole until now. Also the real killer most likely put that there." Melinda informed him.

"What? That ain't possible! Even if someone else were to do that it should have been obvious when you went inside your room!" Willie tried countering but I knew he was wrong again. I then looked up and began playing a video. "Everyone this is the reason why Melinda didn't know about that hole in the wall."

 _"I was in the library all night with her. Neither of us left and neither of us fell asleep."_

"That's what you meant Paul, isn't it? You and Melinda were in the library at nighttime weren't you?" I questioned him.

He simply nodded. "That is correct. As my recorded self stated she and I both were there all night and neither of us left or fell asleep. We were also together the entire day as well. Ollie can attest to that."

"Yes. I was with the two of them this morning and all day before I went to bed at night." Ollie confirmed.

"Which means that not only did Melinda never know about the hole but her and even Paul both have strong alibis. It should also be noted that the first and most obvious suspect is never really the culprit." I stated pointing forward at him. Melinda smiled as he podium retreated back into place and turned back from red to blue.

Willie looked speechless. "Aw shoot really? I though for sure that was right. Now I feel stupid especially since I did no investigatin'." He sighed out in disappointment.

Tommy smiled at him. "It's fine man. Don't worry. Most everyone else had done at least a little looking around. So we'll just have to pick up the slack and help fill the holes."

"B-Besides I think not everyone here is the culprit." Sienna spoke up.

"What do you mean? Is there someone else you think isn't the killer?" Brenda asked in surprise.

"Y-Yeah. Mikayla." She whispered shyly.

"And where's your reasoning? It's foolish to say something with no evidence. Don't waste our time!" Paul shouted at her.

She cried out and hid her face. Mikayla glared at her. "Well guess what she does have a reason because the two of us were also together last night!" She hollered back at him.

"Then give us the details already!" Paul growled back with impatience.

Mikayla sighed before speaking. "I didn't go back to my room because earlier I was told by Helen that she had been going to Sienna's room to help her get to sleep but because of what transpired yesterday she wanted me to go help Sienna so she could rest herself. It took me quite a bit of time but I had finally gotten her to go to sleep at about 11."

"The Monokuma Files did state that both victims died at about 10:30 and as long as Mikayla was helping Sienna go to sleep until 11 then the two of them also have rock solid alibis too." Luca chimed in.

"Hmm." Paul humphed at them in annoyance.

"Well now we've taken our suspect list down four but leaves us with an unreasonable ten suspects left. If no one else can produce an alibi with someone else then I doubt we can lower it farther." Ollie mentioned.

Marcel and Evelyn raised their hands. "We were together until about 11 as well. After that I went to my dorm." Marcel told us.

"And what we were doing was... a very interesting experiment as he took me up on my service offers." Evelyn cooed. Marcel's face flushed as he and her smiled at each other.

"With how you two are looking at each other I doubt we wanna know what it was." Tommy sighed.

"Anyone else?" Ollie asked again.

This time no one spoke up.

"Then our list goes from ten to eight. Now that there is no chance we can narrow it further since no one else can produce an alibi so let us press on." Damian said. "I think that we should next speak about is what did kill Jayden and Helen."

"Um but it's super obvious right? The knife next to Jayden killed them both." Shana pointed out.

"If that's the case then figuring out how they died will be easy!" Willie shouted happily.

'Was it the _one_ knife that killed them both? I gotta let everyone know what we found.' I thought.

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Loaded Truth Bullets: Knife in Pillow, Bloody Knife, and Monokuma File #2

"So how do you think the murder happen?" Evelyn asked.

"Well it's obvious that Jayden died first! After all **you'd have to kill him** in order to get Helen." Willie answered.

"So the killer sliced at Jayden's throat to kill him then approached Helen once he was dead." Shana continued.

"That's gotta be it! I bet that's when they stabbed the back of her head **with the same knife**!" Damian shouted with glee.

Truth Bullet Fired: Knife in Pillow

"YOU'VE GOT THAT WRONG!"

 **Counter!**

"No there's no way the knife that killed Jayden was the same one that killed Helen." I told them.

Damian looked at me with surprise. "What? Why not? They both died to similar wounds right? So what's the problem?"

"Did anyone actually try to look at Helen's wound on her head?" I asked everyone.

"No way! I wasn't gonna touch her body!" Marcel yelled. "I would have gotten those cooties from her!"

"Are you still serious about that? What about Evelyn?" Tommy asked him.

"She said she cleaned herself of that disease so that's why I accepted her offer of..."

"Using my hypnotism to provide both of us certain... pleasures." Evelyn finished as Marcel blushed again.

"I had to ask." Tommy said also blushing now.

"Next time don't." Shana deadpanned at Tommy.

"A-Anyway the reason I say that is because you would have seen there was a second knife and it was still inside the back of Helen's head." I explained.

Paul looked to me in shock and disapproval. "Are you serious? If that knife was still embedded in her head then we would have noticed. The handle would still be outside and visible. Not to mention it would have propped her head forward with the handle pushing against the pillow."

I shook my head at him. "No it wouldn't have. Especially since the blade was not only in her head but through the pillow too."

"What?! The knife was stabbed in the pillow too?" Evelyn shouted in horror.

I nodded as I loaded the picture. "The killer most likely did this to disguise the knife so we would believe there was only one murder weapon. They probably removed the knife after killing her, stabbed it through the pillow, and back into her head to hide it."

"Um actually I don't think so." Mikayla interrupted me. That caught me off guard as my surprise was vocalized. "Huh?"

"Well I had double checked the wound and the blade is very thin. It would have taken precise alignment to ensure that it would fit perfectly but that would be difficult to do with holding the blade through the pillow, keeping it straight, and lining it up with the wound. I doubt anyone would be able to do it without scratching up the back of her head around the wound a little but I found no indication that the knife was attempted to be put back in." Mikayla explained in detail.

"Would you even be able to see cuts that small? Maybe it wasn't that difficult to line it up." Luca suggested.

Mikayla shook her head. "Nope. It would have opened the wound wider no matter how careful you are and I could see that the wound wasn't any bigger than the blade. My vision is so clear I can see baby spiders across a room so I would have seen if the wound had opened wider." Mikayla told us.

"And she is the Ultimate Veterinarian. We should believe she knows what she's talking about when it comes to injuries since she treats animals on a daily basis. After all humans are just another animal." Tommy noted.

"Then how did that knife get put through the pillow and Helen's head?" Shana asked looking completely lost.

Melinda grinned at us. "Instead of thinking how the knife had reentered her head, try thinking how it had simply entered her head in the first place."

'How it entered her head in the first place? What does that mean?' I wondered. I closed my eyes and began imagining different sequences of how the knife could have first entered her head. It was like I was riding a snowboard or taxi in my mind. The suddenly an idea popped into my mind. "That's it! What if the knife was in the pillow beforehand?" I suggested.

"The knife was in the pillow before? What do you mean? Are you saying they used they pillow as a cushion? Don't be stupid!" Shana yelled at me.

"No it wasn't used as a cushion. It was used to hid the knife." I told her.

"They hid the knife?" Marcel asked in disbelief.

"Yes." I replied as I continued. "The killer hid the knife in the pillow and used it as a way to prop the knife up. That way when Helen laid back she would be stabbed in the head."

"Wait! How can you say that?" Evelyn suddenly hollered, halting me and my theory. "What?" I asked confused.

"How would simply lying back be enough to stab her? If anything she might have cut herself or bonked her head against the blade but it would require a lot more force to send a knife that deep into your skull. So saying she laid back on it doesn't hold up!" Evelyn shouted glaring at me.

"Was that a lie? Did Kai lie to us?" Damian asked in horror.

"Um..."

"What? No I wasn't! I was just suggesting a theory I thought of!" I pleaded.

"H-Hello?"

"But with what Evelyn said, it makes it sound like you were trying to mislead us. That's very suspicious of you." Willie said staring at me accusingly. Suddenly my podium was red indicating I was almost in the hot seat.

"Excuse me?"

"Hmm? Did anyone else here that squeak? I swore I heard a mouse." Melinda asked looking around.

Evelyn jumped with a screech. "EEK! I hate mice!"

Mikayla's face drained of color. "Is it Jum-P? Did they escape again?!"

Suddenly Sienna raised her hand. "A-Actually that was me."

Melinda tapped her hand against her forehead slowly. "Oh! That was you! I thought I heard a mouse trying to get noticed. Too bad nobody cares." She said mockingly. Sienna looked down as she was almost on the verge of crying.

"Hey! Be nice to her!" Brenda growled at Melinda before looking to the ice skater. "We're sorry Sienna but with all the ruckus it was impossible to hear you." She apologized to her.

"It's fine. I-I tend to be quiet anyways which isn't the best thing for us right now so I understand if you're mad at me." Sienna also apologized.

"Don't worry! We forgive you. Now just tell us what's on your mind." Luca said sweetly to her. That seemed to inspire her as her posture straightened up and her voice was louder.

She smiled at him with a firm nod before looking out with a deep breath being let out. "Well I think Kai's theory is true. And I have a reason why."

I felt a bit of relief rush into my fast beating heart. 'So Sienna has a reason why she thinks my theory is correct? Then I better pay close attention since I might not hear everything she says.'

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Knife in Pillow, Status of Helen's body, and Wrinkled Bed Sheets

"I believe she might have stabbed herself when her head was on the pillow." Sienna started.

"But I already said how that was impossible. **Laying down would not apply enough force** to stab yourself." Evelyn growled at her.

She cringed a little but did not back down. "But maybe she didn't lie down. Maybe she was jumping on the bed. After all the bed was all messy. I think she was jumping on her bed and when she **fell back she got stabbed by the pillow**!"

Truth Bullet Fired: Status of Helen's Body

"YOU'VE GOT THAT WRONG!"

 **Counter!**

"Sienna, I appreciate your belief in me but I have to disagree with that." I told her.

She looked at me looking very upset. "W-W-W-Wh-What?"

I sighed at her defeated, sad look. "Listen I don't mean any offense but it's just that..."

 **"I will shine a light through your lies!" Shana exclaimed.**

"How dare you doubt her! I actually think that she might be right!" Shana growled at me.

"Hey! What are you doing?" I asked perplexed.

"What does it look like? I'm gonna fight ya on this! Don't worry Sienna! I believe in you and I will crush this heartless boy for his disbelief!"

 **Rebuttal Showdown!**

Truth Blades Prepared: Monokuma File #2, Status of Jayden's Body, Shana's Account, and Wrinkled Bed Sheets

"I can't believe you right now! Sienna just gave a great theory to help you out and you go against her when she's only trying to help you! Why do you doubt her!?" Shana shouted furious at me.

"No just because I doubt her theory doesn't mean I don't appreciate her help. I just doubt it because of the evidence that doesn't match up with her deduction."

"Well I believe her! I believe that Helen was **jumping on ==/== the bed** and that's what got her killed!"

Truth Sword Used: Wrinkled Bed Sheets

"I'LL CUT YOUR WORDS DOWN TO SIZE!"

 **Counter!**

"But for Helen to have been jumping on her bed that led to her death would be impossible for her." I refuted.

"And why do you say that?" Shana snarled, her eyes looking like they burning with rage as they glared wide open.

"Yes Sienna was right about the bed sheets being wrinkled but look at how the wrinkles are formed." I quickly brought up the photo of the bed I took. " If you look at the way the bed sheets are pushed around you'll see what I'm talking about. The middle of the sheets are arched up and much higher on the bed while the sides are almost exactly where they should be positioned. This would indicate that something was pushed down the middle of the bed and I know exactly what was pushed. It was Helen."

"Helen was pushed up the bed?" Brenda asked, her eyes wide in an agonized expression.

"That has to be it!" I replied. "Helen was probably already sitting on her bed and after our killer slit Jayden's throat, they charged at Helen, who most likely crawled back towards the pillow to get away, and then tackled her back which slid Helen and the bed sheets up into the pillow. This would surely be enough force to send the blade into Helen's head and it would also explain the bruises on the front of her body. Bruises that wouldn't be there if she had been jumping on the bed and fallen backwards. That's what I tried to say before Shana interrupted me."

"We also need to recall that Helen wasn't exactly her normal high-spirited self that entire day so for her be jumping on her bed like a child would be kind of a big stretch." Luca added.

"O-Oh. I guess I can understand that." Shana said looking annoyed but also a bit shamed.

Sienna looked away rubbing her pigtail nervously. "I guess I was wrong. I'm sorry I'm so useless."

Luca shook his head at her still flashing that endearing grin at her. "I don't think so. If you hadn't brought up the bed sheets then Kai might have not figured it out. It's because of you that he was able to reveal the truth behind Helen's death. So be proud of yourself. Kai is happy that you helped him! Isn't that right Kai?" He then looked to me with a smile so obviously fake that I knew he was trying to tell me to go along with what he was saying.

But he wasn't wrong. Sienna was the reason I figured it out. As such I looked to her and nodded. "That's right. I'm sorry I made you feel bad by doubting your theory but it was because of it that I was able to solve that mystery. So thank you very much."

Sienna looked absolutely shocked but soon smiled with a blush as her head dropped down but her eyes were fixed on me and Luca. "Y-You're very welcome."

I looked to Luca in disbelief. He was astounding to have cheered up someone so prone to being so vulnerable. I was blown away by his quick thinking and kind gestures towards the others.

I heard Shana sigh in defeat. "I guess I should be the one apologizing. I'm sorry."

I smiled at her too. "It's fine. It's done and over."

Then she glared at me. "But I still think you're sick!" She then glanced at Evelyn who was staring at me dreamily. I groaned as I rubbed the bridge of my nose between my fingers before Shana continued. "Besides it's not done and over. We still need to find out who killed them."

Brenda nodded. "She's right. The blackened is very crafty to have hidden that knife that killed Helen and blamed the murder on Melinda with the crossbow setup."

Damian went into a thoughtful state with his arms folded and his eyes closed, deep in thought. "Then what should we discuss next? How Jayden died?"

"No that should be pretty straightforward. The knife we found next to him is what killed him." Tommy reminded him. "It is covered in blood and there was nothing else at the scene that could have killed him."

"Then how about we talk about where the killer got the murder weapons!" Evelyn suggested. "I think it's obvious they came from the kitchen."

"No I don't think that's it." Luca said.

"Huh? Why not? Do you doubt me? That kitchen is full of potential weapons." She refuted him.

"But there was another place where the weapons came from. You know what I'm talking about right Kai?" Luca asked me.

I nodded to him before loading up the school store weapons. "It's more likely that the killer got the weapons from here. There was a glass counter and on the bottom shelf hidden by all the items on the other shelves was a big empty space where the crossbow was. You could tell that since a box of arrow for the crossbow was next to it. And right next to that was a rack with five spaces for five of the same knife."

Luca then continued where I left off. "But we found only three knifes in their spots and two missing. This has to be where the weapons were obtained. We can also assume a saw was taken to make the hole in the wall but was gotten rid of to destroy evidence. After all just by looking at the knife you can see it's not even a kitchen knife."

"As a matter of fact they are 11 inch MTech Xtreme MX-8054 Full Tang Military Knives." Melinda threw in suddenly which left most of us staring at her. "What? I'm the Ultimate Huntress I know my weapons." She added.

"Well anyway, there's also the fact that the kitchen is off limits at night and I'm sure those who were in the cafeteria didn't see anyone take anything from the kitchen during the day. But we haven't heard anything about the school store being off limits at nighttime." I included with our earlier deduction.

"Yep yep! As far as the rules state certain areas can't be accessed but the school store is one of those areas that the rules doesn't apply to." Monokuma mentioned to further prove us right.

"Also we found this to be even more sure they came from here. The school store lock and chain that Jayden and Helen set up was completely torn off along with the door handles to the school store." I told them after loading the image.

Paul then spoke up. "I'd like to also state that the lock was most likely broken off during the day. After all we got our motives yesterday morning and the trap was set up before Helen went to her room last night. Which means that it had to have happened then. But because it was locked up and nothing else of interest is nearby, none of us had any incentive to be near that place and why we can't decide on the killer when no one was around to witness the murderer breaking in."

"Then with that said I wanna talk about something." Willie chimed in at this point. "Who was it exactly that found the bodies first?"

"Well that would be me and Shana." Damian confessed.

"Then shouldn't we be doubting them?" Willie questioned.

"W-What now?" Damian asked in sudden shock.

"Wait a minute are you accusing one of us? Of being the killer?" Shana shouted at him.

"Well that is something we need to discuss. You two did find the bodies first. That can be quite suspicious." Paul noted.

"But I didn't do it!" "But I didn't do it!" "Just confess already!" Shana, Damian, ans Willie all shouted.

'Did one of them do it since they are the first witnesses? I may be able to determine that or not if we talk about how the bodies were discovered. That is if I can even hear one of them through all this shouting.' I thought to myself as Shana and Damian both moved forward into the hot seats.

 **Mass Panic Debate!**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Shana's Account, Monokuma's Account, Tommy's Account, and Paul's Account

"If you two say you aren't the culprit then explain how you found the bodies so easily." "You best start yodeling now otherwise I ain't gonna take it easy on ya." "If you even think of lying I will cut you down." Paul demanded, Willie hollered, and Melinda threatened.

"Well I was looking for Melinda and Helen so **I went to check their** rooms and Damian came out of his room." "But **I don't know how to yodel**." " That's seems pretty harsh. Besides we don't know where you were this morning." Shana told him, Marcel confessed, and Brenda deadpanned at her.

"I was very tired after last night and I simply slept in pretty late." "Does it look like I was talking to you, boy? Don't be so stupid!" " **I remained in the library** and Paul left to fetch us breakfast." Damian confessed, Willie growled, and Melinda chimed in.

"Then how was it you found the bodies?" "I'm sorry man! I didn't realize that!" "That doesn't explain why you had Paul come get your food and why you didn't." Paul pried forcefully, Marcel shouted back, and Brenda replied suspiciously.

"Well we went to the door, opened it, turned on the light, and found their bodies. But at first **the door was locked**." "Then how about you pay attention and keep that pie hole shut!" "I simply didn't want to be near you dweebs. Is that so much to ask?" Shana replied defeated, Willie growled in annoyance, and Melinda yawned.

"That's not helping your case!" "Will you both cut it out? You're derailing the debate!" "Apparently it is." Paul cooed in a teasing manner, Tommy shouted at them, and Brenda groaned out.

"I-It's true man! But as soon as we were about to leave **we heard a click**!" "Wait since when were we on a train?" "There's no point in **questioning her**. Let's leave her be." Damian shouted flustered, Marcel cried our confused, and Mikayla advised her. I was able to catch a glimpse of what someone had shouted.

Truth Bullet Fired: Monokuma's Account

"I CAN HEAR YOU!"

 **Consent!**

"I believe Damian is right. They found the bodies because of the click they heard from the door, not because one of them already knew they were in there." I told everyone.

"Oh thanks man! You don't know how much that makes me happy that you trust us!" Damian squealed overjoyed.

Shana looked away. "I still think you're gross." Evelyn waved once at me and blew me a kiss which made me shiver.

"You're gonna believe them because of a click they heard? Were you even there?" Paul hissed at me.

"No but what Monokuma told me is why I can believe them." I quickly played back his testimony.

 _"Yes indeed. This class trial must proceed so I unlock any doors that can lead you to certain clues to make things fair during the class trial. And besides I loved watching the despair on your faces from encountering the two dead bodies!"_

"Monokuma said he unlocks the doors to make a fair class trial. That click was Monokuma unlocking the door. That's why Damian and Shana discovered the bodies." I told them.

"Hmm. Well it seems that holds up but that doesn't excuse them from being the killer. After all they still have no alibi to use to get outta this." Paul practically snickered.

"Well at least the focus isn't on just us anymore. So that's good." Damian sighed as he returned from the hot seat.

"Still better to have been off the chopping block than remain on it." Shana groaned following suit.

Brenda looked like she had a brain flash as she gasped audibly. "Guys, I just thought of something."

"What is it? Don't leave us hanging man." Marcel whimpered.

"Well if Monokuma had to unlock the door doesn't that mean that the killer would have been the one to lock it?" Brenda asked.

"The killer probably just took Helen's key and destroyed it like they did with the saw to hide evidence. After all having Helen's key on you would be very suspicious." Marcel concluded.

"Wow. Is there an actual brain in there?" Ollie asked not sounding sarcastic but like she actually meant it as a question.

"Sh-Shut up man!" Marcel shouted.

"But that can't be it! Because look what I found on the desk in Helen's room!" Brenda said as she loaded up a picture for us to see. My eyes widened as we saw Helen's room key on her desk. "See? This means the key was inside there already."

"Y-You could have just planted it and taken the picture!" Marcel shuddered at the sight.

Tommy stood up for her defense. "No when we were investigating the room we decided to work together before splitting up once we left the room. I can testify it was there since I have a picture too."

Paul looked at Brenda and Tommy. "Or you could be covering for her and you both played a part in it." Before the two had a chance to defend themselves Monokuma suddenly jumped in again. "Before I let history repeat itself the answer is no. Even if there is an accomplice only the one who does the killing will be the blackened. Accomplices get no benefit for helping move a murder along. Also I will say that even though you didn't know this I will get this problem outta the way. There is no accomplice in this case."

"B-But th-th-that would mean..." Sienna stuttered as Ollie finished her thought.

Ollie stared blankly at the picture. "The killer was still inside the room since the door couldn't have been locked from outside."

Damian shook his head. "But that's impossible. Sure the light was turned out..." "Guilty on that one! I wanted to give the first reveal of the bodies a little more "OOMF" after I unlocked the door for them." Monokuma quickly confessed before Damian continued. "But me and Shana would have seen them run out the door or when we turned the light on."

Shana then followed up with her own statement. "They could have hidden in the bathroom but everyone was accounted for! Paul knew Melinda was in the library, Damian was with me, Luca had joined up with Kai and Ollie, and everyone else was already in the cafeteria for breakfast."

"Then how did the killer leave the locked room?" Tommy shouted in utter confusion.

"Maybe they picked the lock?" Marcel wondered.

"That's for unlocking doors. I don't think you can lock them up with that technique." Paul replied.

"Actually the dorm doors are guaranteed to be 100% unpickable! No matter if it's for locking or unlocking the doors it cannot be picked." Monokuma informed us.

"Then it's impossible!" Sienna cried out.

"Not quite."

"Huh?" Sienna gasped as we looked collectively over at Melinda.

"What are you taking about woman?" Willie asked her cautiously.

She grinned at us before she closed her eyes. "It is possible to do. I would like to propose something to the court."

"What is it you wanna talk about?" Evelyn asked.

"I would like to propose the killing order is wrong." She offered which left us baffled.

"But the killing order can't be wrong. In order for someone to kill Helen they would have to get through Jayden who was protecting her!" Brenda shouted.

"Just think on this and I'm sure the answer will become clear. Who could have been inside to lock the door?" Melinda asked us.

I was the first to answer. "Well since the fourteen of us are accounted for it had to have been Jayden or Helen."

"Now then combine my question with your answer and you will all see what I figured out." Melinda purred almost.

I thought about it and my mind went numb. "Are... Are you suggesting that..."

"Jayden killed Helen." She said plainly.

 **Class Trial Intermission**

* * *

 _And so the plot thickens! Find out why Melinda believes Jayden is the blackened and what the end result of the class trial ends with! Also do you guys like the V3 aspects I took from the game such as the hot seat/podiums and the Mass Panic Debate? Don't worry more V3 stuff in the next chapter too. Again leave reviews on what you think so far and the next chapter will be up quite soon. Until then enjoy this despair inducing cliffhanger! Puhuhuhuhuhu!_

 _Oh and quick update: I wanna make some of these guys seem more anime visually so some characters will have slight changes to their appearance (mostly hair colors and styles) in the introduction chapters to give my OC cast a more anime feel to them. I will inform you guys who have changed so that you can quickly reread and see the changes made._


	7. Chapter 1: Class Trial Part 2

**Class Trial Resume**

"Jayden killed Helen." She said plainly.

I felt a cold wind smash into us as everyone shivered suddenly.

"No. No that can't be it! Jayden killed Helen? That's so... f-fucking wrong!" Brenda shouted.

"Yeah! He wanted to protect us all right? He swore to all of us! There's no way it's him." Tommy agreed with her.

"Just look at the facts. They were the only ones in the locked room and besides didn't he do something that gave him the chance to set up the trap?" Melinda asked coldly.

Brenda froze up. Luca looked at her concerned. "What? What is it Brenda?"

"M-Me, Mikayla, and Sienna all took Helen away after the motive videos. It was a few hours later and we were in the rec room when Jayden approached us. He asked for Helen's key because he said he wanted to protect her tonight after what happened today and he needed to ensure her room would be safe. So she gave him her key and he left... with a duffel bag."

I felt a gasp catch in my lungs as my breath couldn't escape. Melinda only chuckled. "A duffel bag huh? And what do you think was inside it? Maybe... perhaps... the weapons from the school store?"

Paul smirked at Melinda. "Impressive deduction Melinda. You're quite useful."

"No! I don't want to accept that! He was very kind and sweet! He was always thinking of our best interests just like Helen was! He would never kill Helen!" Shana shouted angrily.

"But I mean the facts don't lie right? It must be true." Evelyn replied.

"I think it's true." Ollie shrugged like it wasn't a big deal.

"I don't wanna believe that!" Sienna cried.

"Maybe it was full of his exercise equipment." Luca suggested. "I mean because after seeing him stand up for Helen I can't accept this either."

I groaned out in frustration. "Well what do we do now? It seems like we're split down the middle right now."

Monokuma suddenly froze up. "Split? Did somebody say split?" He then began laughing happily and manically. "This is actually happening! I am so excited! Attention everyone I am proud to introduce to you all the morphenomenal trail grounds!"

"The what now?" Willie looked at him confused. "Is morphenomenal even a word?"

"It is now! The trial grounds are gonna morph so get ready kids cause we're taking the trial to the next level! Literally!" He shouted at us. Suddenly a panel popped up in from of him as he pulled out a Monokuma shaped key. He inserted it into the panel and turned it as we saw it light up in front of Monokuma. Suddenly the whole place lit up as I felt my podium drop a bit and then suddenly began levitating up! But then I saw that everyone's was following after me in a stair like pattern with Sienna next to me and I saw that Brenda would be that last one floating up. Even Helen's and Jayden's podiums went up with us. Everyone looked completely horrified as we floated up and soon we began mixing around. Those of us who don't think Jayden killed Helen, which consisted of Brenda, Willie, Luca, Sienna, Mikayla, Damian, Shana, and Tommy, were on one side and the others who think he did kill her, Paul, Melinda, Ollie, Evelyn, Marcel and myself, were on the other side.

 **Debate Scrum!**

"There's no way Jayden would kill Helen! He's not that kind of person!" Brenda shouted.

Paul took the chance to rebuttal. "Just because you think you know a person doesn't mean you know what he's capable of."

"He would never hurt anyone! It's his duty to protect others!" Willie shouted.

Ollie took the chance to counter. "But his duty may lie more so to the person in his motive video."

"He defended Helen from Melinda. We can't forget that!" Luca argued.

Marcel surprised us all when he took the stand. "He probably just defended her so we would trust him more easily."

"But he made a promise to protect us all!" Sienna cried out.

Evelyn was next up. "Just because he said he would doesn't mean he will uphold that promise."

"He was so kind and caring. Can we really think that he killed Helen?" Mikayla asked.

I was the one to take this one. "He may not have thought he could have killed her either until that moment."

"I don't know if I trust what Melinda says. She has been very tricky with us." Damian suggested.

Melinda took that one quite personally probably. "I may play this game but the true killer is just as tricky. It's obvious why."

"I refuse to accept this! His bag may have been carrying some personal belongings." Shana growled out.

Ollie took this argument. "But no one can say for sure what he was carrying with him since no one checked the duffel."

"Can we really believe Melinda of all people about this?" Tommy asked.

I took it upon myself to finish this. "If we can't believe in her then how can we find the truth and survive?"

We pushed back against them and soon the six of us pushed the other eight's statements, arguments, and theories back before me and the other looked to them and shouted.

"THIS IS WHAT WE DECIDED!"

 **Full Counter!**

We soon found ourselves lowered back into our rightful places as our argument had ended. Melinda smiled mischievously before speaking up. "He most likely left to the school store, torn down the lock, which he would be capable of with his strength, took the weapons, deceive Helen to giving him her key, and set up the murder."

"He also most likely knew where the weapons were since he had to look around the school store for the lock and chain used on the doors." Ollie added.

Paul then jumped on in too. "Also let's address the situation of his talent. The Ultimate Bodyguard knows all seven self defense arts so taking him on is a death sentence for anyone who opposes him. Not to mention he was the strongest person here. After all he beat Luca and Willie in that arm wrestling contest single handedly and those two have shown impressive feats of strength with their talents."

"Hey I was there too!" Marcel complained.

"Yes but you were just collateral damage." Paul sneered at him.

Marcel slumped at his harsh words. "That's mean man."

"Shut up." Paul ordered.

Mikayla was looking down before she looked up. "Um... now that I'm thinking about this more clearly I think I have to agree."

Brenda looked at her shocked. "What? Why Mikayla? Don't you want to believe in Jayden?"

"Of course I do. It's just that I didn't think this was really necessary until now." She then touched her handbook and loaded a picture of Helen's hands. "Can anyone tell me what they see here?"

"Um... her hands?" Marcel answered unsure.

"Yes but what about them?" She asked again to progress us toward the answer she was looking for. Soon I spotted it. "On the tips of her fingernails. Is that... blood?"

"Yes it is." She answered.

Status of Helen's Body Updated

"You really do have incredible eyesight! It's barely noticeable until you take the picture and enlarge it." Luca said in bewilderment.

"I thought it was irrelevant at first but after thinking about how Jayden was the one that killed Helen it suddenly made it very real." Mikayla said sadly.

'What does she mean it made it very real? What has Mikayla figured out? I need to know!' I pondered.

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Status of Jayden's Body, Status of Helen's Body, Bloody Knife, and Knife in Pillow

"I finally understand how Jayden is the direct cause of Helen's death." Mikayla said, wiping tears away.

"You're talking about the **blood on her fingertips** right?" Evelyn asked.

"How do you think she got blood there?" Mikayla asked.

Shana raised her hand. "Maybe the **blood from her head** when she was pushed into the knife in the pillow."

"The blood would have soak more than the very ends of her fingertips." Paul grunted at her.

"T-Then maybe it was from the **blade on the ground**?" Sienna suggested.

"What if it came **from her attacker**?" Luca offered up.

Truth Bullet Fired: Status of Jayden's Body

"I BELIEVE YOU!"

 **Consent!**

"I see now. It's just as Luca said. The blood on her fingertips came from the one who killed her." I said softly.

"Then if that's the case then I was right." Luca said also upset.

"W-What do you mean?" Tommy asked lightly trembling.

"In Jayden's Monokuma File it stated that there were small markings in his right arm. When I took a picture of his body I happen to get his right arm in the shot as well. Once you look at it it will become clear as day."

I uploaded the picture and soon everyone was gasping. "There are e-exactly ten t-t-t-tiny punctures in his arm-m." Sienna said shakily.

Damian pointed to the photo. "Not only that but with how they are spread out it looks like something gripped his arm."

Mikayla nodded. "That is how they can be tied together. The blood of Helen's fingers came from the wounds she accidentally gave Jayden. It would also explain how she got the bruises from him when he tackled her."

"Wait you said she gave those punctures accidentally? How can you be sure?" Evelyn asked confused.

Mikayla nodded her understanding as she began explaining. "Well if you had someone charging at you, even if it's someone you know, your hands would have instinctively gone up to defend yourself. When Jayden made contact with her he most likely used his arm to push her back and that's what she took grip of. However once he pushed Helen into the pillow and the knife she most likely tensed up immediately from experiencing such intense pain. So much that her body's muscles clenched up and her nails dug into his skin enough to slightly cut them but not enough for them to bleed out."

"S-So then... it's really true?" Brenda asked between sobs. "He... really *hic* killed Helen?"

"There is no other explanation. Which now brings us to the even bigger truth. Who killed Jayden?" Melinda asked.

At first no one said anything before my eyes widened. "Don't tell me."

She nodded once she knew I was on the right track. "That's right. Jayden killed himself."

Once again the room froze from the freezing atmosphere that blanketed over the room with its icy tingle at yet another horrifying truth.

"He killed Helen... then he committed suicide?" Willie asked looking completely mortified.

"But that can't be true. I mean think about it! The whole point of the motives was to make us kill so we can get out and discover the answer! Why would he commit suicide if he already killed Helen?" Shana asked with absolute fluster.

Melinda nodded. "I can see your point. Why do something so meaningless if it doesn't benefit you in the end right? Well think about it like this. His talent was the Ultimate Bodyguard and he is tasked to protect people. What greater dishonor is there than killing someone you're meant to protect. He probably realized what he did when he killed her and instantly regretted it. It's also possible he thought that if he did manage to escape and sacrifice us all to get out the outside world might discover how he escaped and why we all died. If that were to happen they would probably just kill him for killing all of us or worse discharge him and let him live his life as a failure and dishonorable traitor. He'd never be employed, never be able to do the thing he loves, and never be looked up to by others. Those thoughts must have plagued his mind the moment he killed the little Miss President and so he decided to take the easy way out by killing himself."

Marcel nodded. "That does make a lot of sense. So then the dude really did it huh."

"I guess so." Mikayla whispered through her tears.

"It may be horrible but quite possibly for the best. After all the blackened is dead and if the blackened is not here to be punished then that means we all live right?" Ollie asked looking over to Monokuma.

"Well it does suck since that means I don't have a punishment to use but when it comes to suicide I guess there's nothing even I could do about it. I can't punish a spotless in place of them as it would violate the rules so I guess a dummy or something would have to do instead." Monokuma replied.

"Then we have no reason to argue about this. Jayden killed Helen and then himself out of guilt. Simple and yet effective for a class trial I'd say." Paul chuckled.

'It seems everyone agrees now.' I thought, 'Everyone can come to the conclusion that Jayden committed suicide and no one has to die again. But... is this really for the best?'

...

...

...

"No. I can't accept this."

Paul looked to me in confusion as his eyes narrowed at me. "What?"

"I'm sorry everyone but I simply cannot accept that Jayden would kill Helen or himself!" I shouted angrily.

Melinda looked flabbergasted at first before glaring at me. "And why is that?"

"It's just that I can't believe that a person like Jayden is capable of doing this not only to an innocent woman like Helen but to himself!" I growled at her not caring who I pissed off.

"We already discussed this! Jayden killed Helen because of his motive video then committed suicide from the guilt of killing her! What's stopping you from believing?" She yelled back.

"It because of that reasoning that I refuse to believe it!" I snarled through clenched teeth and quivering fists.

"Tch." Melinda scoffed as she tensed up in anger and glared at me.

"After everyone was arguing when we watched our motives, Jayden spoke to me in private and what he said hasn't left my mind." I told them as I recalled what he had told me.

 _"You're right. There's no possible way for me to protect 15 others from dying. But even knowing that I won't give up. As long as I can help even one person escape and fail everyone else or die trying then I am more than okay with that. I have failed others besides Tweety but I haven't let that stop me before. If someone needs protecting, I will keep protecting until I die!"_

"He told me that even if he were to fail us he wouldn't stop trying to protect others since there is always someone looking for help. It was clear to me that he had a very unique mindset. One so focused on what he was doing and how he was gonna help us over helping himself. If he really wanted to kill himself, he would have done so for our benefit and left a suicide note telling us so that way we wouldn't make a mistake at the class trial. That is why I can't see how he'd just have that drastic change of heart and why I refuse to acknowledge it!" I shouted pointing at Jayden's crossed-out portrait.

Paul and many of the others were simply staring me down. "You imbecile! You really think such weak reasoning will change our minds? You're foolish to believe a dead man's words."

I grimaced as I felt a pang slam into my skull as a headache began to form. "I'd rather believe the words I found to be spoken with true intention then believe the deduction that counters those words." I pressed my forehead against the railing of my podium and applied pressure to try and help squeeze the pain away.

Mikayla sniffled as she wiped the oozing mucus dripping from her nose on her sleeve. "I know how you feel, Kai. I want to believe those words too. But let's face the facts. Jayden was the strongest one here. No one is capable of forcing him to do this or anything, right?"

'Wait what?' Suddenly I felt like a flash dashed into my thoughts at that moment as I slowly lifted my head up. It was a revelation of sorts as something suddenly clicked in my mind and the gears began turning again. "That... has to be it." I whispered.

Mikayla looked at me confused. "Huh? What is? Was it is something I said?"

"I finally see. I completely understand what it was we were missing." I told them.

Damian blinked at me. "What are you saying Kai? You're not making sense man."

"Mikayla is right. Jayden was the strongest one here and no one is capable of forcing him to do this." I repeated almost mindlessly like a zombie.

"Um, I still don't get it." Damian muttered.

"I know. I know who the real killer is who got Helen and Jayden killed." I told everyone.

Paul sneered at me. "We know who it is! All the clues and evidence point to Jayden committing this crime! Don't you dare tell me you're going to deny the conclusion you helped bring us to!"

"No the evidence doesn't lie! But someone here does." I growled lowly.

"Kai? Are you saying you know who the culprit is? That... that it's not Jayden?" Luca asked nervously.

I closed my eyes. 'This is it. The moment of truth we've been searching for. If I go through with this I will be condemning that person. Sacrificing a friend, another human's life. But this is the only way. After all more people will die if the blackened gets away with what they've done. Besides I have to avenge the deaths of two people who's only goals were to help everyone around them after they were killed in cold blood.' I spoke up after I had thought that to myself. "The true blackened of this case..."

...

...

...

My eyes opened as I looked to my right, five seats down. "It's you, isn't it Evelyn?"

Everyone's eyes quickly darted over to the foxy girl as she stared blankly at me in return. There was brief moment where no one could say anything at first before,

"What?" Evelyn asked in surprise as she blinked at me like her brain just registered what was said.

"I said you're the true blackened, aren't you Evelyn?" I repeated myself as my glare remained glued to her.

There was another brief second of silence before Evelyn reacted. "Pfft! Bahahahaha! How hilarious of you Kai! Truly that was a stupendous joke. But we need you to be serious about this. Our lives are on the line. So who do you really think it is?" The only response I gave her was the unfaltering narrowed eyesight and serious frown directly on her. Her smile quickly vanished. "You must be joking. You cannot believe it was me can you?"

"I don't want to believe it but I don't have another choice but to believe it right now. Please tell me why I am wrong." I pleaded her.

"What I want to know is why you _do_ think it was me?" Evelyn bounced the question back to me.

After a second I looked up at her and replied. "Because you're the Ultimate Hypnotist. You could easily force Jayden to commit this crime by using your talent over hypnotism."

Her eyes glared at me after I explained. "That's it? You're throwing away everything we have debated about so you can blame it on my talent? That's very low of you Kai." Evelyn spat at me.

Paul's arms were now folded as his menacing gaze hadn't left me this entire time. "That seems much too convenient of an answer to this trial. After all we already discussed that the most obvious suspect is never the culprit as we proved with Melinda."

Melinda nodded in agreement. "That's right. Beside even if hypnotism was involved there's no way in hell it can be proved it was used with the bodies in question are unable to move and show signs of it."

"Actually they can and they do." I retorted. Melinda gave me a bewlidered look as did everyone.

Evelyn seemed to tense up as she began lighty tremble in her podium. "You're lying. You are! Which must mean you're the real killer!"

"No. I'm not the lier here. That's you." I almost snarled at her.

"Then why don't you prove it! There's no possible way to prove my hypnotism was used!" Evelyn shouted angrily at me.

'No there is a way to prove it. I just need to show off that piece of evidence I found.' I thought as our next debate began.

 **Non-Stop Debate**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Status of Helen's body, Status of Jayden's Body, Monokuma File #1, and Monokuma File #2

"You're just using my talent to your advantage to try and kill us!" Evelyn shouted accusingly as she pointed at me. " **You're the killer** , aren't you?"

"But there might be a good chance he's not lying. I bet he might even be on the right track." Luca defended.

"How can you believe such a baseless accusation?" Melinda growled at him. "Did we not already discuss that **Jayden is the culprit**?"

"Jayden had to have been the one to actually do the killing but if there's a chance that someone made him commit the crime then we shouldn't overlook it." Brenda replied.

"But Jayden couldn't be forced to do anything! He was the steongest person here! **I am not capable of forcing him** to do anything!" Evelyn argued. "Besides it's **physically impossible** to prove that my hypnotism was used!"

Truth Bullet Fired: Status of Jayden's Body

"YOU'VE GOT THAT WRONG!"

 **Counter!**

"That's a very interesting way you summarized that Evelyn. That also is the reason why I know without a doubt you're lying right now." I told her.

"Huh?" Evelyn gasped in confusion.

"What are you babbling about? Stop beating around the bush and spit it out already!" Paul yelled out.

"In CSI and detective shows, it's a proven fact that a dead body is just as capable of telling a story as a living one can and Jayden's body has sung its song already." I quickly loaded up the picture and pointed out his eyes. "Notice how one of Jayden's eyes is shot wide open as if it suffered a massive deal of pain from dying but the other one is almost completely shut?"

"B-But isn't that just because... he was in p-p-pain?" Sienna asked.

I shook my head at Sienna. "That's the way it does look but there's more to it than we first thought. Evelyn remember what you told me about your hypnotism?"

 _"I did notice the man was still under my hypnotism since my methods seem to have rather unusual side effects." I_ _looked down at her and blinked in shock. "Hypnotism can have side effects?" She shrugged at me. "Nothing bad like prescription medicines have with vomiting, diarrhea, or death, I mean more so physical things..."_

"You told me that your hypnotism has a very unique side effect. Nothing like induced vomiting but physical ones. Would one of the more common ones be the twitching of an eye by any chance like the same eye twitching side effect Marcel had?" I asked her.

"Wait what?" Marcel looked susprised.

Damian looked at Marcel angrily. "You really are an idiot. You were hypnotized the first day. Why else were me and Sienna right there when you woke up?"

"But she said I won her bet." Marcel replied.

"S-She lied." Sienna told him plainly.

Marcel looked shocked as he gaped at Evelyn.

Ollie then joined in. "Yes I witnessed this myself when you chased those two down. I happened to notice Marcel's eye twitching like Kai said."

 **"I shall make you see what I see!" Evelyn bursted out.**

"Fine yes my hypnotism can give people side effects physically but that doesn't prove that I killed them. Why do you hate me Kai? After all we've done for each other why are you being so persistent about this?" Evelyn cried out with what I knew were fake tears.

I shook my head. "We hadn't done anything for each other. So stop holding back and tell everyone how we can tell that your powers were used on Jayden!"

Her tears were suddenly transformed into anger as she glared. "I hate you! I will prove my innocence! You can't beat me traitor!"

 **Rebuttal Showdown**

Truth Blades Prepared: School Store Weapons, Bloody Knife, Status of Jayden's Body, and Status of Helen's Body

"I'm telling you there is no way to prove how **Jayden's eyes ==/== were positioned** shows he was under my hypnotic suggestion. He very well could have been **cringing from ==/== the pain** of slicing his neck open!

"No there is a way to see if Jayden was hypnotized. All we have to do is see the difference between the bodies." I refuted.

"That doesn't change anything. It's obvious both victims were in pain. **You can tell just ==/== by looking at them**. So that's that. Your little charade is over now. You have no way to dispute me. Especially since there is **no difference with ==/== the bodies**!"

Truth Blade Used: Status of Helen's Body

"I'LL CUT YOU WORDS DOWN TO SIZE!"

 **Counter!**

"No. You're wrong. There is a very notable difference between Helen's body and Jayden's body. I am of course referring to their eyes." I loaded up both pictures of them. "Helen does look like she was in pain with both eyes wide open but why is it that Jayden's eyes don't have the same consistency as Helen's? If they were both in shock from the pain of death then why isn't Jayden's eyes both wide open. They both could also be closed shut but the eyes are vastly different with their positioning. My only theory for that is because one is shot wide from the pain while the other twitched shut from your hypnotism."

"N-No that's wrong. That surely can't be enough to persuade anyone!" Evelyn shouted.

"If it's not enough then I believe I can help furthur Kai's theory with another inconsistency I discovered between the bodies." Mikayla suddenly popped in the conversation.

Evelyn's eyes widened at her. "M-Mikayla? You too?"

The Ultimate Veterinarian looked down from her. "I'm sorry Evelyn. Believe me no one wants this to happen but we don't want to die either." With that said she loaded up a picture of the stab wounds on each body. "When I saw Helen's head wound I noticed that the wound was perfect and how it was the only one on her. I now know that because of this Helen had died instantly. But look at the one Jayden has."

We looked at Jayden's cut and I noticed something very peculiar about the wound. "It's jagged on the left side of his Adam's apple but a smooth cut from that point on."

"Isn't that strange? Why do you think the left side of his neck is all cut up so badly yet turns into a clean cut the rest of the way?" She asked us.

We thought for a moment before I heard Luca speak up. "Well the only thing I could imagine is that the knife was shaking as it went across his throat. I mean the knife is consistent with the wound being one straight, connected line but the beginning of the wound still had more open wounds like it was trembling."

"That's because that is exactly what happened. I believe Jayden had begun slicing his neck while his arm trembled. Now why would his arm tremble?" Mikayla asked again.

"W-Well obviously because the big guy was scared." Evelyn answered.

"It is possible but most likely not the correct answer. If he was scared of dying he probably wouldn't have commited suicide and if he was scared and then just braced himself for the inevitable pain then why not just do the slice fast? Why prolong the suffering by going slow then fast and wouldn't his eyes be closed if he was bracing himself?" Mikayla told her.

"So you're saying there are too many inconsistencies for that to be the answer? Then what other possibility is there?" Paul asked.

After a second to think something came to mind. "What if he was resisting?"

"Huh? He was resisting?" Brenda asked surprised.

"That must be it and since we already discussed that no one could have been in the room besides the two victims and Helen was the first to die, then the only one Jayden could have been resisting was himself. And the only reason he was even fighting himself is because of the suggestion Evelyn put him under." I explained to them all as everyone's stares were not focused on me but on the suspect in question as Evelyn's podium became the new hot seat.

"Evelyn? Are you really responsible for two deaths of our friends?" Shana asked looking mortified.

"No..." Evelyn whispered.

"Why would you do this to them? Did you hate us all that much?" Marcel asked.

"No..." Evelyn repeated a bit louder.

"P-Please... tell us why you did this." Sienna begged.

"I... said... no... nononoNoNoNoNoNOOOOOOOOOO!" Evelyn suddenly began screaming as her eyes grew wide and the blood vessels were now very visible on them as she held her fists up at us.

"Gah!" Sienna cried out!

"No! I refuse this! I refuse everything you've said about me! I didn't kill them! It wasn't me!" She screamed like a psychotic patient at a mental hospital.

"Evelyn please. That's enough. Stop fighting us. You don't understand how painful this is for us." I pleaded her.

"How painful it is for you? What about me? How do you think I feel! I don't wanna die either! This world still needs me! Are you willing to try and sacrifice me for your own selfish purpose?" Evelyn asked very angrily.

"No of course not! No one wants this. No one wants to die but that didn't stop you from sacrificing not only Jayden but Helen too. Besides this is a trial where the criminal mastermind has to pay for their crimes. Unfortunately that means your time is up." I regretfully replied.

She shook her head at me. "My time is not up. It will never be up. It wasn't me! I couldn't have gotten them killed and I can prove it!"

Damian looked at her shocked. "Really? How?"

"Simple. In order for Jayden to have done what he did through my hypnotism, I had to give him orders in which to follow. However there is one thing I never even knew about that would prevent him from carrying out what he had done. That would be the school store and its contents. I had never been to the school store, none of you can prove that I was. Also I wasn't at that meeting you all had the first day you explored the school and discussed what you found. Therefore I wouldn't know that the school store was loaded with weapons. Weapons and items that Jayden grabbed and used for the murder. So I had no way of telling him to go get the weapons from the school store specifically, so that's why I can't be the culprit. It must be Jayden since he did set it up and carry out the murder. He already had knowledge of the school store." Evelyn lectured us.

"I'm sorry Evelyn but once again you're lying. I know it." I told her.

"No I am not lying!"

"You are!"

"Believe me!"

"I can't!"

"Why?!"

Truth Bullet Fired: Tommy's Account

"THIS IS MY ANSWER!"

 **Break!**

"Because of what Tommy told me is why I can't trust you." I told Evelyn begrudgingly.

"Huh? Me?" Tommy asked confused.

"Don't you remember Tommy?" I asked but instead of waiting for him to answer I simply began playing the video of his testimony.

 _"Wait how do you know Jayden and Helen locked the school store? I was the only one who actually saw them." He chuckled at me before continuing. "Well it's because Jayden told me. Not just me he told everyone else about the school store being locked up. So those who were at our meeting and those who were not were all made aware that this dangerous place was inaccessible..."_

"Oh that's right. I forgot I said that." Tommy said lightly blushing from embarrassment.

"You must be really bright. Well brighter than Marcel." Shana groaned.

"Hey!" Marcel shouted at her.

"Well at least it was a comment as much as an insult." Tommy shrugged.

"Hey!" Marcel shouted again even more annoyed.

"Tommy told me that Jayden had told everyone the school store was locked up. This included people who already knew about the school store and the weapons inside and those who didn't know. For those of you who weren't there can you tell me if what Tommy said is true for you?" I asked looking at Paul, Melinda, Ollie, and Sienna.

"Yes he did inform me the store was inaccessible." Paul answered.

Melinda nodded in agreement. "I was told the same thing."

"As was I." Ollie added.

Sienna only nodded as well with no verbal response.

I then turned back to Evelyn. "If those four heard that from Jayden it seems odd that you were the only one who didn't hear it from him. I would ask if you heard it from him but I know you'll just refuse it. But Tommy can prove that you know. Tommy care to explain how you know?"

Tommy nodded, fully understanding it was all on him now. "Yeah. You see Jayden made it clear I was the last person he told about the school store lock by saying that everyone else had already been informed. Which means that he had already told Evelyn about it before seeing me."

"Even though Evelyn might not have been outright told why the school store was locked, just being told that would indicate there was something dangerous in there we didn't want people getting to. Evelyn most likely put two and two together and that's how she would have been able to get Jayden to retrieve the weapons from the school store." Luca theorized.

"It should also be noted she may not have specified the exact weapons for Jayden to grab since she hasn't been inside. But because Jayden already knew what was inside the store after searching for the lock and chain in there, all she needed to do was give him a brief summary of the kinds of weapons and items to bring to Helen's room and he would have been able to grab those specific weapons on his own." I told them.

"T-There's a hole... in your argument. There has to be." Evelyn sounded defeated as she attempted to fight back.

"No there is no hole. All the gaps have been filled. I'll show you there isn't any chance for you to refute us any longer. I'm gonna go over your case from the beginning so you can just admit to what you've done." I said softly to her as I closed my eyes.

 **Closing Argument**

Act 1

"Everything started yesterday after we were shown our motive videos. Everyone was freaked out and was pushed beyond emotional stability because of what we each witnessed. Because so many of us were on edge some of us began fighting amongst each other. However one of us was pushed so far they were willing to commit a murder. But they weren't planning on doing it themselves. After everyone had dissipated, our culprit began finalizing a plan most likely in the privacy of their room when someone knocked on the door. That person was Jayden who was going around to speak with everyone after he and I had our conversation. He had decided to pay our culprit a visit but that would be a poor choice for him because something would happen that he would not be prepared for. He was suddenly hypnotized and told to commit a murder. The target was Helen. Whether it was because he was told to specifically kill her or not is unknown right now."

Act 2

"Now under the culprit's hypnotic suggestion, the first thing he had to do was get the material needed for the murder. He went back to his room to grabbed a duffel bag and then made his way to the school store. Since we found no evidence as to what he used I can only assume he used his bare hands to break the doors open. After all he was very strong and with the doors being made of wood, it would provide little challenge for him to tear the handles, lock, and chain off with ease. Now having access to the store he quickly loaded up his bag with the crossbow, an arrow, and two of the knifes in the glass cabinet and a saw from somewhere else inside the school store. After retrieving those items there was just one last thing he needed. That was the key to Helen's room so he could set everything up."

Act 3

"After he got it from Helen and the others he went into her room and began setting up the murder. First he sawed out the hole in the wall and bookcase to create an opening between Helen's and Melinda's rooms. He then loaded the crossbow with the single arrow he brought and placed it in front of the hole and set up the books in front to hide it from plain sight. This was all set up to frame Melinda as the killer. But Jayden did one thing to it. He made sure the arrowhead was visible and I'll explain why later on. He then planted a knife into the pillow on the bed by stabbing it in the back but not all the way through. This was meant to hide the knife from sight and disguise the actual means he was going to use to kill Helen. He most likely took the duffel bag and saw and hid them in his room to hide the incriminating evidence. We might not know since we didn't think to investigate there."

Act 4

"Soon nighttime came along and Helen went back to her room with Jayden there as well. She didn't have any suspicions that he would harm her since he was the Ultimate Bodyguard but that belief is what got her killed. I believe at some point she had sat down on the bed and was preparing to go to sleep. However I bet she noticed the arrowhead sticking out of the books on her bookcase and Jayden used that as a trick to make her believe the arrow was about to be fired. He then charged at her to make it seem like he was trying to protect her. Helen did not dodge as she allowed herself to be tackled by Jayden which pushed her and Jayden up the bed. This over course is what killed her as Jayden shoved her head into the pillow... and the knife, killing her instantly. But not before her body stiffened and dug the small cuts into his arm leaving behind the connecting evidence that Jayden was indeed the one that killed Helen."

Act 5

"Soon Jayden stood up and began carrying out the final command of his hypnotized mind. He pulled out the extra knife he had taken and placed it against his throat. He was most likely suppose to kill himself instantly so that it would seem like he committed suicide but the culprit probably didn't realize something would go awry. Jayden somehow managed to take some control back but not all. As a result he was cutting his skin as his arm shook, trying to resist slicing his throat. However I guess the suggestion was still too powerful for even him to resist forever. As soon as the knife touched the center of his neck he lost his battle and sliced himself open the rest of the way, ending his life. But giving in to the hypnotism might have made his eye twitch and remain that way after his last breath leaked out his throat along with his blood, leaving behind the most incriminating clue yet. Yet our culprit believed their powers wouldn't have been resisted so they relaxed in their room, rest assured that their plan would go through without a hitch. Yet despite not having any physical influence with the crime, this person was the only one who forced Jayden to commit it for them. This person is the only one who could have forced Jayden to do this, the only one who could have done this without getting directly involved, and the only one who could have made such futile errors by not checking the crime scene for clues that could have pointed them out as the true killer."

"That is the truth behind this crime of yours. Isn't that right, Evelyn Sanford the Ultimate Hypnotist?" I asked after giving my closing argument.

 **Break!**

"So how about it? Did I leave anything out?" I asked staring blankly yet sadly at Evelyn.

"..."

"..."

"...No."

Willie gasped as he covered his mouth. "Did you say no? Does that mean you admit it?"

Evelyn didn't respond as she looked away, angry and upset. Melinda chuckled. "Wow. Who would have thought she'd be so devilishly clever? She even had me on the ropes and I'm the one always dangling the prey off my rope traps."

"Just shut you're pie hole woman!" Willie shouted at her.

"So then this is where it ends. About time. I was getting bored with discussing this useless endeavor. Monokuma, I believe none of us have anything else to talk about anymore." Paul called over to him.

"Roger Dodger! Now then please look down at your screens and cast your vote! You only get one so make double sure you vote for who you wanna vote for. Also make sure you do vote before time runs out or you'll regret it in your next life!" Monokuma threatened us with as the screens in front of us lit up.

I saw sixteen buttons appear with each of our faces on them to the left and a thirty second timer on the top center of the screen. I quickly scanned the screen and soon found Evelyn's face as I tapped on her. Soon a picture of her appeared on the right and a confirmation appeared asking if I was sure I was casting my vote for her. Reluctantly I hit yes to confirm my vote. My timer stopped but the screen did not go away as I assumed everyone else was still voting. After a few seconds the screen flashed off. "Now then let's see the results!" Monokuma cheered.

Soon a big screen descended down from above and quickly turned on to show the caption "Voting Results!". It then showed all our names as thirteen marks appeared under Evelyn Sanford and one under Jayden Hutchinson as a picture of Evelyn appeared on the right with confetti flowing down, indicating she was the one who received the most votes. 'Guess Evelyn still had hope someone would vote with her.' I thought sadly as I looked down in shame, knowing full well what I've done to her.

"The blackened has been selected by majority vote. Did you make the right choice or the dreadfully wrong one? Let the unveiling of the blackened commence!" Monokuma gleefully called out as the lights went out. The next thing we saw was a lottery ball cage machine light up in front of us. The most notable thing about it was the fact it was called the Monokuma Vote which had a Monokuma dressed in a Statue of Liberty attire. A drum roll sounded and it began spinning as we heard plastic balls being thrown around inside. Soon it stopped as a purple ball fell out onto the metal rail underneath and slowly rolled down the track, stopping at the end to reveal a pixelated face of Evelyn on the ball. Suddenly the bottom of the machine popped open as a Monokuma holding American flags in each hand began waving them and coins with his face spilled out on the ground like we won the lottery. But none of us felt like we won anything.

 **Class Trial End**

* * *

 _And there you have it folks. Evelyn has been convicted of the murder. Why do you think she did it? What could have persuaded her to commit such an act of treason against our heroes? Find out in the final part of the chapter and until then hope this despair fills you until that last part is posted because I sure will be! Puhuhuhu!_


	8. Chapter 1: End

"Looks like you were right! You're first class trial went in favor of the spotless! The blackened responsible for the deaths of Helen Kibby and Jayden Hutchinson is none other than Evelyn Sanford!" Monokuma shouted out happily before getting a sly grin on his face. "I will admit though it was almost a gray area deciding who the true blackened was between Evelyn and Jayden."

Paul looked at him with intrigue. "How so?"

"Well Jayden was the one to kill Helen and himself and so it should have been Jayden. However there was the bits where Jayden was resisting the kills and was then forced by the suggestion he was under. And because that suggestion was what ultimately made him kill and it was put on him by Evelyn, I decided that she was indeed the true blackened despite not being the physical killer." He explained to us.

"That's a good thing to know for the future." Paul noted.

Mikayla glared at him. "How can you say that at a time like this? Evelyn killed our friends and now we're going to lose her too!"

"Friends? If any of you think I'm a friend then your sorely mistaken. Hell if any of you think you have friends here you'll be dead very soon. It's only been four days and you think that small amount of time is enough for you to truly consider these people to have such personal titles?" Paul scolded us more than he asked us.

Luca glared at him. "Absolutely."

Paul glared at him silently as Luca continued his statement. "It doesn't need to be a lifetime spent together to consider someone to be a friend. All that needs to happen is what you do during what big or small amount of time is spent with them to call someone a friend or not. And for me I've made plenty of friends already! Also given our situation it's no wonder I do think most of you are my friends. Since I don't have any of my buddies... or family here to comfort me, I can take even greater comfort knowing I have someone to turn to. Someone I can rant to about my problems, whose shoulders will be there for me to cry on, and most importantly a person I can have fun with despite the grim situation I wake up to everyday."

Despite him looking around at everyone as he spoke I couldn't help but feel like his eyes were mostly focused on me. 'Does he really think of me like that? I should feel honored that he does seem to think so strongly of me yet I'm not sure I've truly earned that. But if he feels the time we spent is enough then it's also enough for me.' I thought cheerfully, trying to keep my spirits up but failing to do so as the dread quickly flowed back in as _she_ spoke up.

"Such sentimental feelings will surely get you killed like they did Helen and Jayden." Melinda warned him.

Luca lost the smile that grew during his speech as he frowned at her. "Well I could say the same with you. After all you and Paul seem to have grown quite fond of each other."

"Yeah. What were you two during out past nighttime in the library by yourselves? We're you getting frisky?" Shana asked them accusingly.

Damian blinked at her. "Whoa she actually does have a dirty mind as much as a dirty body."

"Shut it Gatsby!" She shouted at him mockingly.

Paul rolled his eyes at those two before looking directly at Luca. "For you're information we are not friends. In fact I can hardly stand the sight of her. But the two of us were up all night discussing one thing and one thing only."

"And that is what exactly?" Luca asked.

"How we're going to survive over the lot of you." Melinda answered her gaze darkening at us that left most of us breathless.

"What are you saying! Are you planning on killing us all?" Brenda yelled with a mixture of anger and fear in her voice.

Paul chuckled lowly at her. "Don't be stupid. The rules only allow us to kill up to two people and there are too many people right now for us to go on a killing spree. Also we now know there is no benefit for an accomplice in a murder here. Besides we want to live and not face punishment like bimbo slut over there." He said pointing over at Evelyn with his thumb, who made no remark or reaction to the insult. "So we're going to be discussing things in further detail. As such we are extending an invitation for you all. We will be allowing a few more people to act alongside us for the meantime to talk about how we will survive as the rest of you kill each other off."

I narrowed my eyes at Paul and Melinda. "We're not going to kill anyone! Besides who'd want to get involved with you two?"

"I'll join you." Ollie raised her hand. I gasped as I heard her agree to their terms.

Paul smiled as he scanned around. "Anyone else?"

"I... I don't want to die here man. I have to get back out on the water so... I'll go with ya too." Marcel also accepted which made Melinda and Paul both grin and laugh at the rest of us.

"C-Could I...?" Sienna began to ask with her trembling hand raising up before Mikayla ran next to her and smacked her hand down. The short girl cringed and almost began to cry before the hand was gently kissed by the assaulter which made Sienna look to Mikayla confused. "Please don't ask them if you can join them. They'll take advantage of you. Besides I promised Helen I would look after you so you don't have to worry."

"But you only promised to watch out for me for last night only." Sienna corrected.

Mikayla softly shook her head. "Not anymore. Now that we've lost Helen I'm making that promise full time."

Sienna's eyes seemed to light up as she hugged Mikayla her head snuggled into her stomach as she smiled happily. "Thank you."

"Bleh. Disgusting." Paul shuddered.

"Well I personally don't care about all this! What I wanna know is why we're even here in the first place?" Tommy growled before his glare settled on Evelyn. "Why Evelyn? Why did you kill them?"

"There are multiple reasons." She admitted. "But one of the main reasons why I did this was because I hated them."

"What? What do you mean you hated them? They did so much for us!" I shouted at her, not being able to comprehend that answer.

"That's exactly why I hated them!" She shouted angrily. "They were strong, fearless, and influential leaders in their own respective ways. Their talents with motivating and protecting others made them stand above the rest in everyone's eyes. But me? Everyone only saw me as a girl who would use her dark, hypnotic powers to exploit them of everything they hold dear and they would have no memory or recollection of my deception. All of you turned me away when all I wanted to do was help! I wanted to help get your minds off this killing game! All I would have done was bring up powerful and happy memories you hold dear to help you feel more relaxed in this hellhole! The only one who accepted my invitation was that idiot Marcel after I told him I scrubbed away the cooties off me!"

"Wait... that cootie thing was another lie wasn't it?!" Marcel yelled at her.

Shana groaned an annoyed sigh at him. "I swear you need to be killed next."

Brenda looked at Evelyn. "Wait what about Kai? After all he stumbled out of you room with his pants undone and you on top of him."

"How many times must I tell you we weren't doing anything! She offered her hypnotism to me then offered... other services when I refused. I quickly ran to the door to leave and was gonna fix my pants before she tackled me through the door."

"He's not lying. I wanted to help Kai but even he refused me so I thought I could swoon him and make him feel better another way. I was disappointed he did refuse to sleep with me. He would've been my first." Evelyn sighed.

"Wait so... then he isn't the disgusting perv we thought he was." Shana said surprised.

"No way! He's got more class than that!" Damian stated confidently.

"Wait if Kai wasn't your first then wasn't it Marcel? After all he was blushing up a storm more than a well bred cow after her heat season is over." Willie analyzed.

"No. I just used my hypnotism on him and he had me bring up the memory of his first BJ. He was blushing because he had a wet patch on the front of his shorts when it was done." Evelyn explained.

Marcel once again turned beat red. "Why did you have to tell them man?" But Evelyn only rolled her eyes at him.

I bowed my head down at her. "Look Evelyn, I'm sorry we made you feel that way but I didn't refuse you because I thought you would use me. It's just what Jayden had said to me earlier did put me at ease so I felt like I didn't need it."

"But you have at thought badly of me at one point though. Don't lie. I know you have. Everyone here has." No one responded further proving her point correct as I felt absolute shame fill my heart. "That's what I thought. You're all nothing but judgmental bastards who predict a person by what they are instead of trying to learn more about them!"

"In that case let us learn more about you then. Surely you're hatred for Helen and Jayden could be strong enough to kill but that wasn't what triggered you to actually kill, was it?" Paul asked. Evelyn remained silent. "Just as I thought. It was the motive video. The person you care most about is what fully pushed you over the edge. So tell us who that is? Family? Best friend? Your horny boyfriend?"

"Stop antagonizing her!" I shouted.

"My sponsors, that's who." She answered.

My eyes once again went wide in disbelief. "What?"

"It's not just Helen and Jayden I hate. I hate everyone that looks to giving out help to others. When people need help they look to a counselor, a psychiatrist, even to their stupid best friend that can't actually help them in any way. When I first discovered I could hypnotize people, granted I did use them at first to play childish pranks, but soon found my true calling and dedicated my life to use hypnotism to help others. At first my business was thriving as I helped people overcome fears, solve problems, and help better themselves, but soon I began losing more clients when they began seeing my talent as a dark and shady scam. I've even had past clients take me to court on false charges of thievery and blackmail and lost thousands of dollars for prejudice and lack of viable evidence to prove my innocence. Yet despite that I remained where I was because of my sponsors. They kept their belief in me and refused to acknowledge me as a crook or failure. They provided me money so that I could prove them wrong. But my first sponsor, the one I saw in my video, is the true reason I killed them."

"The one sponsor in your video that is so important you would kill? Who?" I asked.

"My big sister." Evelyn answered which made my skin crawl as I felt the blood turn cold. "Ever since I discovered this talent of mine, my parents have despised me. They told me I would become a heartless criminal if I continued dabbing in the dark arts of hypnotizing people since at the time I was pulling those harmless pranks. At first I believed them after they continued shunning me, making me no food to eat and no way to get to school without forcing me to walk the five miles or fix my own meals so I wouldn't starve. That was until my older sister came to take guardianship over me. She didn't see my talent as another evil that could plague the world but instead to be used as a light. She encouraged me to be happy with my gift and do good with my skill by giving me that single dollar bill. Every since then my big sister has been my top sponsor and provided me with the most money out of any sponsor _she_ hired on for me! She is in debt because of how much money she has given me and I have been eternally grateful that she saved me from my depriving parents and has kept me in business for all these years! But then Monokuma shows me a video that has taken my chances of helping people and my sister, the one who has had blind faith in me, all away from me? Of course I killed them! And I wouldn't hesitate to kill you all if it means I can continue helping others and find my sister!" Evelyn screamed out as she was far beyond the point where she had began crying angrily sometime during her confessional.

To be honest I didn't even realize when her tears were flowing out because my tears were clouding up my own vision. "Evelyn. I-I'm so sorry. I feel so bad for you I truly do! If I could I would provide you as much money and advertisement as you need to keep your business alive!"

She then smiled at me through her tears. "Don't make such an empty promise." That make me look up at her in confusion. "It was only natural instinct for us to survive. Even if I told you all this you still couldn't bring yourself to sacrifice yourself and everyone else here just for my sake would you?" I cringed again looking down in shame. "I thought so. Beside I've made me bed by killing them so I'm gonna lie in it like Helen has. My only regret is not finding my sister before my time was up. Well that and now knowing my hypnotism wasn't all powerful since Jayden apparently nearly broke out of it."

"Are you sure about that?" Monokuma suddenly asked. Everyone turned to him and stared in a complete flabbergasted manner.

Even Evelyn looked just as lost. "What are you talking about?" She questioned him.

"I am happy to present a new segment I like to call "The Victim's Final Moments"!" He shouted before the big screen came down again and turned on to show Jayden getting off the bed and Helen's body dead on the bed. 'What the hell? Is this sick bastard actually showing us Jayden killing himself?' I wondered angrily as I saw Sienna bury her face in Mikayla's stomach and the Ultimate Veterinarian holding her close like a mother protecting her child.

The video showed Jayden turning from the bed as he pulled out the second knife from his hand and pressed it against the left side of his throat and began cutting himself. But his arm soon began shaking as the twitching we saw in his eye slowly stop as he looked to the camera. "I'm sorry I failed to protect you all. Helen... I pray you will forgive me, Kai... I hope my promise will live on through you, and Evelyn..." He paused as he smiled weakly. "...I hope you find what you're looking for." Suddenly he slashed at his neck the rest of the way and collapsed on the floor as we witnessed first hand the last moments of Jayden's life. The last thing we saw was his left hand going to his eye to narrow his eyelids before he left out a bubbly sputter from his throat as his hand fell limply to the ground.

Evelyn looked absolutely mortified. Her face was entirely pale as she looked like she was just about to throw up. "He didn't resist because he didn't want to die. He resisted so he could say those final words before your suggestion killed him." I stated my body still trembling bad after seeing that video.

Evelyn shook her head. "No. He broke free of his hypnotic suggestion entirely! I know he did! I can tell when people are still under it or not!"

"Then does that mean we were wrong?" I asked in horror.

"Nope. It was still Evelyn that made him kill himself. I'm 100% positive." Monokuma stated.

"Then why? WHY?! Why didn't he look angry?! Why did he look happy that I killed him?! SOMEONE TELL ME WHY!" Evelyn screamed out in nothing but broken sadness.

Luca wiped the tears rolling down his cheeks and sniffled a bit before he responded. "I believe it's because he found his opportunity to save someone."

Evelyn's eyes widened at him. "What... what do you mean?"

Luca looked up to her with sad eyes but a proud smile on his face. "I think he did it because he wanted to save you. He knew your intention to kill was pure at its core so he gave his life to you so you could make it out. However he did one last thing to make things fair for us. He made sure his eye was narrowed before he died to give the rest of us a fair chance to survive. He didn't side with either one of us. He did this for _every_ single on of us. That's what I believe."

Evelyn suddenly collapsed on her knees as she began bawling even worse than even Sienna had cried before. She then threw her head back. "Jayden! Helen! Stephanie! I'm sorry! Please forgive me!"

Stephanie. I figured that must be her sister's name as I felt myself shake just as uncontrollably as Evelyn and the others were.

Then what was said next filled us all with even more despair. "Alright enough of this sentimental crap! It's time for the fun to begin!"

"Fun? Y-You don't mean..." Tommy shuddered.

Monokuma giggled as he nodded. "That's right. Since she has disrupted the harmony and been found out, she must be punished!"

My eyes widened in fear as I leaned forward on my podium. "No! Please don't do this! Don't kill Evelyn please! She doesn't deserve this!"

Evelyn stood up on shaky legs. "No I already knew this would happen. I know if we try to escape this it will not turn out good for anyone here. So please don't risk your lives for someone who is good as dead."

"Now then I've prepared a very special punishment for Evelyn Sanford the Ultimate Hypnotist." Monokuma practically squealed in joy.

"Just promise me one thing Kai. Tell Big sister that her little bundle of sweetness wishes for her to be happy and live on even though I won't be there. Will you find her and tell her for me? Please?" Evelyn asked me.

I looked down at my fists as they were gripped so hard the knuckles were fresh snow-covered mountains. "Of course I will. And Evelyn... I'm sorry I couldn't do anything for you."

"I know Kai. Me too." She smiled through her tears.

"Let's give it everything we got! It's... PUNISHMENT TIME!" Monokuma shouted in glee. He quickly pulled out a gavel that spun in his hand as a red button rose up in front of him. His red eye glinted as he did a front flip in the seat without standing and slammed the gavel down on the button as a pixel Evelyn appeared on the little screen.

 _"Evelyn has been found guilty."_ It read as a pixel Monokuma ran in a grabbed the now panicked pixel Evelyn and dragged her across the screen with him as more text appeared saying, _"Time for the punishment!"_

 ***Play youtube watch?v=ba-o18U03wY I know it's not original and possibly not long enough for a story format but it's the only one I feel will work for these punishments***

Evelyn was standing there with her eyes closed as she held her green hypnotist pendant close to her heart as we were all seen gathered around her before suddenly a clamp on a metal cord latched itself around her neck and yanked her away from us as she was dragged along the ground and then suddenly into the ground as a hatch opened up and dropped her in before slamming shut.

Evelyn then lifted back up in a fenced off room as we all helplessly watched as she struggled against the clamp holding her in place as Monokuma appeared in a gypsy outfit and three giant hypnotic spirals appeared in front of her and Monokuma began spinning them.

 **Guided Misdirection**

Evelyn looked uninterested as she followed the spirals and soon her head waved back and forth slowly as she began falling into a trance as Monokuma was close to her ear whispering something to her. Soon she would begin seeing things as a maze was suddenly built up around her. She quickly began traversing her way through. When she came to one dead end she saw her parents yelling and beating on her as a small girl. She cowered in fear as she ran back. Little did she know there was nothing there in the first place. Another dead end she came across, she saw a married couple winning a case in court against her for false charges. Evelyn became frantic as she tried to find her way out only to find another bad memory at every turn. In the midst of all the despair she collapsed to her knees as the voices from those memories echoed inside the walls loudly, screaming into her ears making her scream out in return.

But suddenly they silenced as she turned to a new voice. Her eyes widened happily as she saw Stephanie standing there with her arms held out for her. Evelyn cried out to her big sister as she ran to her and out the maze. As soon as she went to embrace her sister, she disappeared as Evelyn's happiness turned into despair as she ran into a pillar. Immediately thousands of needles erupted from the pillar's entire surface as time stood still. Soon blood began leaking out of the arms as one hand fell down and dropped the green pendant now covered in blood as the bloodied body remained pinned to the spiked pillar. Everyone watched in horror. All that was left of her was a pure look of utter despair as the life drained from Evelyn's eyes.

I soon heard the screams of terror from my classmates as we witnessed Evelyn's death firsthand.

"WAAAAAAAAAAHAHAAAAA!" Sienna cried out in pure agony as Mikayla was also seen crying as she held Sienna close.

"N-No! Evelyn! NO!" Shana screamed out, tears flowing down and smudging the dirt on her face.

"That was too horrible! She didn't deserve that!" Damian reeled back as he held the sides of his head.

"How could ya do that to her? That was beyond cruel!" Willie asked slowly and softly trying to process what happened fully.

"It's simply really. Because it's fun! It was such a spectacular performance on her part. To relive all those horrible memories and then have that all whisked away by her idolized sister and run to her safe arms only to discover it was all the work of a hypnotic suggestion. Oh what despair!" Monokuma laughed.

"You're sick! That is absolutely sick of you! How dare you defile her in such a way! I swear If I ever find out who you are I will not hesitate to kill you!" I growled in pure anger. I soon felt a hand gently touch my shoulder as I turned and saw Luca. He wordless shook his head at me. I understood what he meant and backed off.

"Don't worry Kai. I understand you're angry right now but that's what I like about you. Your anger right now. I think that's the most honest reaction I've seen from you yet." I felt myself tense up at that. 'Does Monokuma know?' I thought in fear. "Puhuhuhu! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!" With that Monokuma's laughing was the last things we all heard as he disappeared from sight. Everyone stood there frozen. Well almost everyone.

"It may have been harsh but I will admit I find his way of killing to be quite... exquisite." Melinda commented.

Paul rolled his eyes at her before turning around. "Come you three. We have much to discuss." With that Paul, Melinda, Ollie, and Marcel all left us there, stunned and silent. Ollie was the only one to look back as she paused to do so. She looked down in sadness before continuing on to catch up with the others.

After minutes or maybe hours of staring mindlessly at Evelyn's corpse we began making our way to the elevator in small groups or some by themselves. Our group began dissipating little by little until it was just Luca and me left. I continued staring in sorrow at Evelyn who still remained pinned up against the pillar. Then suddenly Luca began looking around to see if we were being watched as he quickly ran forward and scaled up the fence and hopped to the other side. I gasped as I ran over too but simply clung onto the fence as I watched him approach Evelyn.

"Dude, what are you doing? Get away from there!" I shouted at him but he quickly slammed his finger against his lips, warning me not to be loud. But at that moment I didn't care. I was just so scared he might trigger something and get killed like Evelyn did. I saw him then bend down and pick up the bloody pendant that Evelyn treasured so much. He then backed off carefully not taking his eyes off Evelyn until he reached the fence and climbed back up and landed right next to me. He took out a hand towel from his jacket's pocket before setting the pendant in it and wiping the blood off it. I noticed the rag had old bloodstains on it already. 'Is that what he uses to wipe his blood with if he gets hurt?' I wondered as he then dispensed the now cleaned pendant out and held it out in his palm. "Here."

I looked to him shocked and confused as I held my hand out and he tilted his wrist so it slipped from his hand into mine. "I think she would want you to have this. After all you promised you would give her sister her final wish. This could be used a memento to Evelyn's memory."

I looked up at Luca as my fingers wrapped around it and I held it close to me. "You... always seem to know what to say. Thank you Luca."

"Let's do the same from here on out. We'll take something back for each of our friends. Something of Jayden's and Helen's too so their families have something to remember them by. And if by any chance we lose anyone else we'll take something for their sake too." Luca suggested.

I looked down. "I just hope that won't be the case." With that me and Luca began making our way back to the elevator and the school.

After we rode the elevator back up to the library I felt like I hadn't slept in years despite it still being around 4 or 5 in the afternoon. We agreed that we should head to our dorms to rest ourselves up. We quickly stopped by the cafeteria to get food in our systems before we went to the dormitory hallway. Luca wished me good night before he stepped into his room. I breathed out heavily before I stepped up to my door but found myself stopping. I looked down the hall to see that Helen's door was cracked open. I felt my legs move on their own as I mindlessly walked over to the door and gently pushed it open. What I saw shocked me.

The bodies... were gone. The blood, the mess, the weapons, even the hole that connected Helen's and Melinda's rooms were gone. It looked like nothing had ever happened in here. But despite this I knew all too well what did happen as my mind flashed back to Helen, Jayden, and Evelyn's carcasses as I shuddered. I breathed out before I went to shut the door but stopped as I saw two things on the floor near the foot of the bed. I walked over and knelt on the ground as I picked them up.

One item I knew too well was Jayden's aviator sunglasses he always wore. The other one was a simple moss green backpack but inside it was what really caught my attention. It was a draft for a story. It's title was "Push Yourself Forward" and I immediately knew who the author was before reading Helen Kibby underneath it. It looked like Helen had written her own motivational book. She most likely wanted to get this published. Now she wouldn't get the chance. But maybe I can. I quickly took the draft, the sunglasses, and the pendant from my pocket as I slipped them into the backpack and slung it onto my shoulders. My mind then flashed back on the class trial.

 _"He didn't side with either one of us. He did this for every single on of us. That's what I believe."_

 _"Kai... I hope my promise will live on through you..."_

"Luca was right. Jayden didn't side with any of us. He gave all of us a chance to live and survive. That must explain why Jayden hopes his promise to us will continue through me. Mikayla is doing the same for Helen by watching out for Sienna. I'm gonna do that same. I'm going to get everyone out. At the very least I will do what I can to get even one person out of here like Jayden would. His promise is now my promise and I swear Jayden I will live by this until the day I die just as you did!" I said to myself, a bold and confident feeling welling up inside of me as I stood there with a newfound strength.

 **Chapter 1: Lending a Despairing Hand**

 **END**

 **Surviving Students: 13**

 ***3rd Person View***

Monokuma would be sitting in front of a television screen as he sat there awaiting for something to happen. Soon the screen flashed on as he was getting a video call from someone. Monokuma rubbed his hands together gleefully as he pressed a button next to him on a remote that answered the call. The picture turned on as another Monokuma appeared on the screen. "Hello Monokuma!" The Monokuma in the chair greeted.

The one on the screen waved back. "Hello Monokuma! How are things going for you on your end?"

"Very exciting! We just wrapped up our first class trial and get this! We had our two victims for this class trial!" He told the one on the screen.

"*Gasp* Already? That shouldn't have happened until the third chapter!" The screen Monokuma sounded shocked by this development.

"That's what I said but it definitely stirred the fun up! Anyway how are things on your end?" Monokuma questioned curiously with a tilt of his head.

Monokuma sighed out happily. "I just started my killing game here. I wonder how things will play out on my end. What has your data shown you with yours?"

"Oh nothing really big yet except one of my students will prove to be quite troublesome for us. My Ultimate Actor." He whispered to him.

"Why? Is he a major drama queen?" The Monokuma asked in the same manner as the one in the chair did just barely.

"Oh most definitely! But not what I meant. Anyways we need to keep this data going if we want perfect results for later so I should get going. Got another busy school day tomorrow!" Monokuma said the other one.

"And I have to check in on my guests! So I'll see ya later alligator!" The Monokuma on the screen shouted to the other.

"In a while caiman!" The other Monokuma shouted back as they both began laughing.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

The screen that kept the room illuminated shut off as both Monokumas vanished in the darkness.

 **Chapter 2: Acceptance is the Best Medicine**

* * *

 _Finally I thought I would never get this chapter done! Now we are moving on with the next chapter of our students lives. What will be the next motive and who will die next? How will the students live their closed off lives before the inevitable? What do you think of the characters who have died so far? I wanna know so leave your thoughts in a review and tell me! Thanks for reading and have a wonderfully, despair filled night! Puhuhuhu!_


	9. Chpt 2: Acceptance is the Best Medicine

**Day 5**

 _ ***Ding Dong Bing Bong***_

I soon woke up to the morning announcement and I felt myself grimace. Still in this prison and still being forced to kill my friends is not the best situation to wake up to everyday. I felt my back creak as I stretched out. Eventually the strain was enough to pop my spine. I sighed in relief as the wave of relaxation rushed throughout my body that came from that. I was soon on my feet as I quickly grabbed the backpack, laced it over my shoulders and began making my way to the cafeteria. I saw a few others ahead of me and heard others behind me as they were walking out and closing the doors to their dorms.

In a few minutes I was entering the cafeteria as I began walking over to get breakfast. Soon everyone was there including the four who've made an alliance of sorts with each other. Well I wish I could saw that everyone was there. I felt my mind grow heavy against my head as I thought back to our friends who we tragically lost. I felt that I wasn't the only one on edge as everyone was shifting around in their seats and silently eating their food. I never felt more uncomfortable in my life. Sure one on one situations generally are not as tense as they can be but the fact that not one word was being muttered to anyone made the atmosphere that much worse.

Soon the cold air was broken as Brenda stood up suddenly. "This is so not cool! I get were all upset about Helen, Jayden, and Evelyn but we gotta move on and continue living! I don't want us all to be sitting around depressed! We still have to find a way out!"

"Sorry but you're not the Ultimate Motivational Speaker. That sad speech isn't gonna do anything." Paul quipped at her.

Brenda shook her head at him. "I'm not trying to motivate us. That was Helen's thing and I know I can't inspire others like she could but I just want all this tension gone! None of us have spoken a single word to each other and it's driving me mad!"

"That's not true. We have." Ollie told her as she gestured to the group she sat with being Marcel, Paul, and Melinda.

Brenda rolled her eyes. "That doesn't count! You guys formed your little group and have a reason to speak to each other! But none of you have talked here or to any of us!"

Melinda shrugged. "It's because we have nothing to discuss with any of you or in front of you. You're all eventually gonna get yourselves killed so there's no reason to divulge our secrets to you."

Mikayla stood up as her fiery glare went to her and Melinda returned it with her own icy stare. "That's enough. None of us are going to fall for what Evelyn fell to. Monokuma will throw another motive at us to try and push us over the edge. He'll drive us mad to kill and no one is gonna do that!"

Sienna smiled. "You tell them Big Sis!"

Everyone looked at her with big expressions of surprise. "Um... I didn't know you two were related. You don't look a lot like each other." Willie said with a confused look.

Mikayla sighed. "We're not. I asked Sienna to not call me that but ever since last night she's been so insistent on it."

Sienna giggled. "You said I could call you Kayla but that didn't feel right. Besides my mommy I've never had anyone look out for me like you have so you're my big sister in my eyes!"

Brenda and a few other let out a sentimental aw at that. I almost did the same with how innocent it was said. Mikayla sighed before shrugging. "Well I'm certainly not gonna force you to stop so do as you please." Sienna jumped up happily as she hugged her close. "Thank you Big Sis!"

Damian soon stood up and approached her. "It seems you've finally broken out of that shell of yours. Then in that case..." He quickly took her hand into his. "...Can I just say how adorable you are little mouse? Your perk, round ears, your silk, raven hair, and petite, tiny nose are all so cute it makes my heart melt just at the sight of you."

He then placed a very quick small peck on the back of her hand. He looked up at her with a sparkle in his eyes and a flash of his signature smolder only to see Sienna frozen in place as her voice and body shook, terrified as she jumped behind Mikayla. "Big Sis p-p-p-protect me from the scary man!"

Damian went white as he jumped back. "SCARY MAN?!" Then out of nowhere he was sitting and facing the corner of the room which was very dark somehow despite the entire room being lit up bright. Everyone was laughing awkwardly at Damian blowing it again.

Mikayla looked to him sympathetically as Sienna trembled against her back. "Don't be offended Damian. She's just not use to _everyone_ here quite yet."

After a second Damian's head looked over as if he just registered what she said. He then was in front of her looking just as chipper as before. "Well then maybe she'll grow more accustom to me if she see me getting along with you. After all you may not be a human doctor but little do you know that I happen to be a lovesick puppy and I am craving to be treated by your loving eyes and am begging for your commands."

Mikayla was quiet before she spoke up. "Any command?"

"You name it." Damian replied.

She hummed thoughtfully before responding to him. "You're being a very obnoxious, creepy kid and I would like for you to stop flirting with me."

Once again he went white as he jumped back screaming, "OBNOXIOUS! CREEPY! KID?!" We soon saw him magically teleport back to that corner that magically grew dark for him.

Luca leaned over. "Damian really has the worst luck when it comes to flirting."

I nodded. "Also he is a bit obnoxious with how constant he flirts, did come off as creepy with the whole lovesick puppy line, and is acting like a kid with those sudden mood swings of his."

"Where does he even get the idea of hitting on someone being sentimental to him and expect it to work?" Luca asked.

"Welcome to the mindset of Damian Eaves everybody. Please fasten your seat belts because we're in for one long, exceedingly boring, poorly planned, bumpy ride." I answered suddenly speaking in a very low voice that made Luca look to me and laugh.

"Dude what was that?" Luca asked me still laughing.

I smiled at him as I laughed with him. "That's my "Next Time/Movie Trailer" impersonation. Do you like it?"

"That was awesome! I didn't know you could do that!" Luca responded.

"Well of course I can! I am a voice actor after all. Doing voice impersonations is ideal for any actor and I've gotten rather good at them."

"I'll say! That was hilarious!" He was still laughing and I couldn't help but laugh especially when I suddenly snorted whihc made me instantly cover my mouth and nose. Luca looked at me and began laughing harder. "Dude did you just snort?"

I looked away completely embarrassed as I found myself still laughing and snorting as I tried responding. "No God please! I hate my laugh!"

"Hey don't worry about that! I think it's awesome!" Luca said reassuringly. Soon my snorting laugh resumed but because my hands we still cupped over my nose and mouth it made my snorts echo even louder than before as Luca was now holding his sides from laughing so hard he was crying.

The two of us were now giggling, snorting idiots as everyone was now looking at us like we were freaks. Soon the two of us saw everyone staring as we settled down and blushed from embarrassment. Yet despite that I couldn't help but feel like everyone had gotten less tense over this small amount of time. I think with Sienna being so cheerful and me and Luca having a laughing fit gave us all what we needed to relax and have fun again.

But that was short lived as I felt someone yank on the backpack and pulled it and me down the the ground. The back of my head collided with the tiled ground as I groaned in pain. I looked back to see stubby black and white feet. "Monokuma?"

"What the hell was that for?" Luca yelled at him as he helped me up.

Monokuma's eyes were on me as he pointed at me with his fingerless paw. "What do you have in the bag, Kai?"

I felt myself tense up slightly as I looked to him. "Nothing."

"Don't bother lying! I know you got it from Helen's room! So what did ya put in the bag?" Monokuma shouted at me.

Shana looked at me suspiciously. "Kai? Did you really take that from Helen's room?"

I looked around to see everyone looking intensely at me and I sighed in defeat. "Okay yes. I did."

"Then what's in the bag?" Tommy asked.

Marcel gasped in horror. "Is it a bomb? Are gonna go suicide on us like 9...?"

"Don't you dare bring that up!" Shana interrupted him.

"No it's not a bomb." I turned to the table I was at and set the bag down before I unloaded its contents. Soon everyone saw Helen's novel, Jayden's aviators, and Evelyn's pendant.

"Did...you steal those from the bodies?" Willie asked glaring at me.

"I didn't steal them. I figured I'd take a momentum of the ones we lost to their families so they have something to remember them by. Besides I found Helen's room open with her novel and Jayden's sunglasses there." I explained.

"But what about the pendant huh? Did you find it there too?" Monokuma questioned me but made it obvious he knew the answer already.

I didn't know how the others would react if I told them how I got it but turns out I didn't need to. "Enough! Stop looking at Kai like he's a criminal! I took the pendant from Evelyn and I put the idea of having the mementos of our friends in Kai's head. If you guys wanna blame someone then attack me!" Luca shouted at them.

I was shocked that he defended me so easily. "Luca?"

"That seems very disrespectful of you two to take from the dead." Melinda said but was grinning happily at us.

Luca growled at her. "We're not trying to be disrespectful! We're trying to carry on their memory. If anything Kai is now taken responsibility of preserving their memories by carrying them on his back. Do you guys think any of you have that kind of strength knowing you're carrying something from someone you've seen die? I would be pained to be reminded of their deaths but Kai is making it his strength by carrying their burdens and if any of you have a problem with it then you better take it out with me first!"

There was a stunned silence that followed Luca's rant as most everyone looked away in shame. Monokuma just giggled at this. "Well said. But despite things cooling down now, I'm happy I was able to stir some drama up before the big reveal."

Paul's eyebrow raised up at him. "Big reveal? What do you mean?"

Monokuma again giggled as he captured everyone's attention now. "Well I have something for you all! Consider it a prize for surviving the first class trial!" He then reached behind him and pulled out a big red button. "Here just press this and your reward will be shown to you!"

Marcel ran up and grabbed the button as he saw the word EXIT written on it. "Is this the button to open the exit? We get to leave! Hell yeah!" His hand flew up in victory before he sent it down.

"Wait don't press it!" Mikayla shouted but it was too late as Marcel's finger slammed the button. Suddenly the entire cafeteria had red sirens appear and begin blaring loudly. Everyone covered their ears as we all sneered at Marcel.

"You idiot! A big red button is never something you press!" Shana snarled at him.

"What?" Marcel shouted back not hearing her. Soon we managed to hear a rumbled from further in the school as we saw Monokuma point out of the cafeteria and made his way out. I quickly gathered the items on the table and put them back in the backpack before we all began following him as he made his way through the school.

We soon found ourselves in front of the school store as we looked across from it to see a wall cracking up before it imploded on us. Everyone quickly covered themselves as small bits of debris flew at us. Soon the sirens shut off as we coughed from the dust and smoke. We recollected ourselves and found a staircase was now there in place of the wall.

"That was easy." Monokuma said as he looked up the staircase before he snatched the button back from Marcel. "There you are! Another portion of the school has been unlocked for you all to explore!"

"So then it wasn't a means of escape?" Marcel asked.

"Of course not! I'd never risk the killing game by letting you guys leave with a press of a button? What do you take me for an idiot like Marcel?" Monokuma replied.

"Quit calling me that!" Marcel shouted.

"Well you are." Shana told him which left him pouting like a child.

"Puhuhuhu! Also there's one more surprise for you. Remember how I took care of the mess Jayden left? Well look behind you." Monokuma pointed behind us. We all turned to see the school store doors had been... completely torn off?

"What is this? I thought you fixed this like you did Helen's room!" I shouted at him.

He shrugged at me before replying. "Well I was gonna but I thought that if I did you kids would try to lock it up again so no one could get in. But that would be very boring if you had no real way of killing each other so I just fixed that problem by getting rid of the doors entirely! AHAHAHAHA!"

He began laughing as he disappeared again. "Hey wait!" I shouted but it was futile. I groaned out in annoyance as I looked back and jumped a little when I saw a lot of the others standing right there in front of me.

"Sorry Kai." Tommy apologized.

"If I had known that Monokuma was stirring up trouble for us I wouldn't have been so harsh towards ya." Willie told me.

"I think it is disrespectful of you to take those things of theirs but I can more so understand why you did what you did." Shana said not looking very sorry.

I felt a rush of relief hit me like a tsunami at their words. I was glad they understood what was going on with our friends belongings but upset that Monokuma made it overly dramatic. 'Is this another drawback to why I'm the Ultimate Actor? Because drama seems to follow me wherever I go?' I wondered.

Paul's eyes rolled as he ran up the stairs. "Well is angone gonna help me in looking for a way out of here or are you morons just gonna stand and squawk like damn parrots all day?"

Melinda's voice was heard from the top of the staircase. "Already ahead of you!" Paul smiled as he went up the rest of the way.

"I swear those two are inseparable from each other. Like seriously when's the wedding?" Shana asked.

After a pause I raised a finger up at the others. "I ship it." I said.

The from the next floor up we heard Paul shout, "Can you not!"

Everyone looked up then at me and began laughing. I found myself laughing too and snorted again. Once again I covered my mouth to stop myself but found everyone smiling endearly at me.

"Kai, there's no reason to be shy about your laugh." Ollie said to me. I was shocked. Not by the fact that they were okay with that bit the fact that Ollie was the one who said it. She then looked over at Marcel. "Come Paul is waiting for us and we know his patience is very thin."

She then grabbed Marcel's hand as she dragged him up the stairs with him asking her to let him walk on his own but she either ignored him or didn't care to comply.

Soon everyone began making their way up to explore the next floor of the school. I saw that Luca was the last straggler so I took the opportunity to catch him before he went up. "Hey Luca?"

He looked back at me. "Yeah Kai? What is it?"

I smiled smally at him. "Thanks again for sticking up for me back there. I honeslty wasn't sure how to handle the situation. Also you didn't need to try amd take the blame." I told him.

Suddenly I heard him step down to the bottom step as he patted my right shoulder. "Kai, I am more than okay with taking the blame for you. After all I was the reason you got the idea to gather mementos for our friends. Besides I know you haven't been that exposed to being social around normal people like us so I was more than happy to help a friend out."

I then laughed a little in my throat. "Luca you gotta remember, there's nothing truly normal about this group."

Luca smiled as he let out a single laugh. "I guess you got me there." He shrugged before turning to go up but stayed put for a second. "I'll see you up there." He said as he began making his way back up to the second floor. After a minute of standing there on my own, thinking on what had just happened I soon began making my way up as well.

I soon found myself in the hallway for the second floor. It was pretty spacious with a few small hallways leading to some rooms. I went down the left hallway to find a gymnasium. It was just like most other gyms with bleachers and a giant open court but I soon saw every kind of sporting equipment located around the gym. Soccer goals, basketball hoops, volleyball and tennis nets, even lines for track and field were painted around the court. 'If I was the Ultimate of any kind of sport this would probably be heaven for me.' I thought as I saw Tommy, Damian, Shana, and Ollie here as well.

I walked over to them as I saw they were chatting. "Hey guys!" I waved to them.

They looked back at me as Damian waved to me. "Wassup man! This gym is nice, ain't it?"

"I'll say. There's every kind of sport and its equipment in here. The nets, the balls, the uniforms, you name it!" Tommy said with a big grin on his face.

"Do you like sports?" Ollie asked. "You sure sound excited for a paleontologist yet it doesn't seem to be your forte."

Tommy looked to her. "Um no not really. I mean it can be fun but I prefer getting dirty digging up fossils."

"Same here. I would rather go mining than play in the dirt with a ball." Shana commented. "But I am curious Tommy. What would you play if given the chance?"

Damian stepped forward and took her hand. "Why I would play whatever you wanted as long as it makes you smile."

Soon Damian was smashed to the ground using the end of Shana's mining ax handle while she held the top part easily despite the weight it had. "Next time you try that again and it will be the pointed end in your skull." She threatened to him with her eyes closed as her eyebrow twitched in annoyance.

"Got it." Damian weakly replied.

Tommy felt a sweatdrop form on his head as he responded to Shana's question. "Well it's kinda lame but I've always enjoyed a great game of lacrosse."

Shana smiled. "Well looks like you and I aren't so different. I was actually captain of my junior league team of lacrosse five years running."

Tommy looked at her surprised as he adjusted his glasses. "Whoa really? Neat."

"Um so have you guys gotten a good look around here?" I asked.

The four turned their attention towards me. "Unfortunately we have but we have no results." Ollie answered.

"We did find a storage room with a lot more equipment and shower rooms for the boys and girls but besides that nothing." Damian told me.

Tommy quickly added. "Also any window that are here are the same as the rest of the building. Barricaded off with no way of getting through."

"I certainly hope the others are having better luck than us." Shana sighed out.

It seemed that was all there was here so I quickly left to find another room with a possible way out. I had no luck. I came across Willie in one of the few classrooms that were found up here but just the same as every other room the windows were barred off. So I went to another room and came across a pool!

It was massive being at least fifty feet long and twenty feet wide. It was also deep from what I saw as it was labeled to be ten feet for its deep end. It had beach chairs lining the sides where we could relax and flotation toys and seats that were inflated and floating on the pool's surface. I also happened to see massive jets in the pool's bottom and a high diving board at the deep end of the pool. Marcel and Brenda were here as they looked around intrigued.

"HELL YES!" Marcel screamed!

I looked to him confused. "What are you so happy about?" I asked him.

"See those big jets in the pool?" He pointed down at them. I simply nodded at him. "Well I happen to know that this pool can actually simulate and create waves! This is the Ultimate Pool for the Ultimate Surfer!"

"Or the Ultimate Swimming Pro. That is if we had one." Brenda commented.

"I bet she'd be hot!" Marcel cooed as he blushed.

"But what if the Ultimate Swimming Pro was a guy?" Brenda asked comically.

"Then he'd be my best man! Either way it's a win for me! I gotta get my board!" Marcel screamed but suddenly.

"Don't you even think about it!" Monokuma shouted as he popped up in front of Marcel who screamed and stumbled back. He was about to fall in the pool before Monokuma jumped in the way and shoved him back towards us. The shove threw Monokuma off balance as he struggled to regain it but fell back into the pool. He broke through the water and spat a stream of water out of his mouth before a siren suddenly blared. "Uh-oh." Was all Monokuma said before the three of us saw conductors emerge out of the jets and then sent the entire pool into a giant conductive mess. The electricity now blazing the pool made all the inflatables immediately pop and so did Monokuma after he was shocked himself, screaming from the electrocution.

The three of us looked in shock as we saw Monokuma die right in front of us. "Holy shit man. That could have been me!" Marcel screamed realizing that.

"But Monokuma saved you and he died." Brenda whispered as she then smiled. "Which means that we don't have to continue the killing game!"

I felt a bubble of hope fill me at that thought but then a voice instantly popped it like the inflatables in the pool. "Guess again!"

Soon Monokuma appeared again. "Surprise motherf***er!"

Marcel and Brenda both screamed as he popped out again. I was in just as much disbelief as them. "But how? You died!" I shouted.

"Nope. Only that version of me died. I have plenty of spares left and I'm tough enough to withstand a lot of tough blows. However there is a limit even for me when electricity and water meets up with my body." Monokuma said with a shrug.

"Yeah what was that about anyway? Why was there electricity conductors in the pool? That's dangerous!" Brenda yelled at him.

"Just turn around and read the pool rules." Monokuma told us pointing behind us. We turned to see the giant sign with the pool rules on it.

1\. No running allowed

2\. No foods or sodas/drinks allowed

2a. However small snacks are allowed as long as no mess is left

3\. No swimming during the daytime

4\. If any of the following rules are broken by _anyone_ they will be punished!

"Wait we can't swim during the day?" Brenda asked.

"Yep! Any motion sensor that goes off in the water will cause those conductors to shock you! You can't even be on the water's surface at all. That means your surfboard is no exception surf boy!" Monokuma growled at Marcel who suddenly looked depressed.

"Well then with that said I'll see ya later!" Monokuma quickly disappeared as we looked back to the floating bits of the inflatables and Monokuma in the pool. The two of us shuddered as we began looking around without another word. Unfortunately the only thing to note was the locker rooms I found there were linked to the shower room that connect to the gym. Besides that we couldn't find a thing as I left and began searching elsewhere.

I made my way down another hallway and found a door with a red cross on it. I quickly stepped in to find Mikayla and Sienna looking around with Mikayla looking very full of glee. I looked around and noticed beds on metal bar bed frames, a desk with a file cabinet next to it, and a medicine cabinet filled with prescription pill bottles and liquid medicines. I could only guess this was the Nurse's Office.

"Hey Mikayla, Sienna. You guys find anything of importance here?" I asked the ladies.

"Big Sis has found a lot actually." Sienna told me as Mikayla turned to me with a file that had a name on it.

She quickly approached me. "Tell me Kai. Are you allergic to pineapple and pollen? More particularly grass?"

I was kinda shocked at that. "Yeah I am. Pineapple only gives me a bad stomach ache and a rash and I get the worst hay fevers in the spring but grass is definitely worse. Physically touching it only irritates my skin slightly but I actually can't breathe if I am anywhere near freshly cut grass."

"Which is why you opted out of a character who mows lawns in a movie right?" She asked again.

Again she took me by surprise. "Yeah. Did Paul tell you this?"

She shook her head. "Nope. Turns out this file cabinet over here has everyone's medical records and history. See?" She then showed me the file in her hands and I saw that it was mine. Sure enough what I told her was already on the page.

"Now no one needs to worry about getting sick or avoiding their allergies since I'll know what they are." Mikayla shouted happily.

"But you're the Ultimate Veterinarian. You're more so certified to treat animals than people right?" I asked.

"Well humans are technically animals right? Sure a doctor may have more training to better help humans than veterinarians but that doesn't mean we are incapable of treating humans. We're basically the same thing. After all I did help out but identifying those injuries on Helen and Jayden."

She did have a point there. If it wasn't for her knowledge in the medical field we probably wouldn't have noticed those injuries the way she did. But a thought then came to mind. "But if you know of our allergies and medical backgrounds, won't the other grow suspicious of you? After all those can be seen as weaknesses and something you could take advantage of."

Mikayla looked at me in shock. "That's right. I totally forgot. In that case I better not delve too deep into them but I am curious about some of our backgrounds so I'll read what will not leave me suspect."

I sighed not seeing how that was any better but I wasn't gonna question it.

After seeing no way to escape from here either I made my way to the final room on the floor. Inside I found Luca, Melinda, and Paul looking around a fitness room. It was filled with so much exercise equipment from dumbbells and weights to treadmills and bike equipment. There was equipment for your leg muscles, some for your torso, and some for your arms of course. While Melinda and Paul seemed to be looking around for an exit or something that could be used to escape, Luca seemed to be looking over all the equipment with a sad smile.

"Hey Luca, are you okay?" I asked a bit worried.

"Do you think Jayden would have loved this fitness room?" He suddenly asked me.

I was a bit flabbergasted that he brought him up but looking around and seeing how it reminded me so much of Jayden's room since he had his own exercise equipment there made me also smile in sorrow. "You know what I bet he would."

We heard Paul groan out his annoyance as the two of us glared at him. "Stop with all that sentimental crap. I swear you two will die like that muscle headed behemoth."

"And don't forget Miss President." Melinda added with a twisted grin.

"Do you always have to be so snide? Why is it so bad to think on the past?" I asked.

"It's true history is a good thing to look upon but the constant reminder of those failures is such a bore. There's nothing here to be happy about. Also yes." He answered both of my questions.

"They weren't failures. If anything the deaths of our friends have given us strength and the resolve to fight and keep living for their sake." Luca grunted.

"I already said this but if you allow weak emotions to take control of your thought process then you'll become weak. Having none of those weak feelings can make you invincible as it has worked splendidly for titans such as myself and Paul here." Melinda lectured.

"No it doesn't. It leaves you cold and cruel." With that said Luca turned and left. I also saw no reason to stick around as I followed him.

Luca walked down the hallway a little before stopping. "Hey Luca? You sure you're alright?"

He heaved out a sigh. "Sorry Kai. Those two are just so uncooperative it's frustrating. Anyways I wanna forget that conversation. We're you able to find a way out?"

I told him what me and the other found. How the gym and pool were connected by the locker rooms, the pool was off limits and deadly during the day, and how everyone has medical reports in the Nurse's Office.

"Whoa pretty heavy stuff but no way out from the sounds of it." Luca commented.

"Nope. I really felt we would find something but I bet Monokuma wanted to crush our hope of escaping again." I groaned heavily.

"Say Kai I've been meaning to ask you. Who was in your motive video?" Luca asked.

I gave him a funny look and he saw this. "I know it is technically something I shouldn't ask since it could give me some kind of advantage over you but I was just curious you know. Do you trust me enough to tell me?" He asked nervously.

I began thinking to myself. 'Well he has done so much for me and he's been a great help and friend but he also didn't hid the fact that he could take advantage of my relationship with Terry if he were to try and turn on me. What should I do? **_Should I tell him or not?_** '

* * *

 _READER PARTICIPATION! I am going to post a poll on my profile! Here's the question: Should Kai trust Luca and tell him his motive video or should he not trust him in case Luca turns on him? If you guys want the next chapter I will require your help. Answer the poll and the best result will end up in the next chapter! I better see some results otherwise no new chapter for you! Muwahahahahahahaha! *Cough* Excuse me. Let me try that again. Puhuhuhu! Also I want you all to know that I have been constantly going back and proofreading the previous chapters and fixing typos and any mistakes I feel like I made while writing this story. So there will be differences if you reread the story and I will continue doing so until I feel I made this story the best it can be and be enjoyable everytime it is read._


	10. Chapter 2 Part 2: Day 6

'What should I do? Should I tell him or not?' I thought about that for a moment as Luca silently awaited my response. After a minute or so I finally decided and said the first thing that came to mind.

"Well how about we both share our motive video's contents? That way it's fair for the both of us." I suggested to him. I was confident he would agree since the two of us have grown quite fondly of each other out of most everyone here. But I saw Luca's body tense up and how rigged he became. Being an actor you have to recognize the subtle cues you are given to perform perfectly for the best results for a scene, whether it's from a backstage hand, the director, or an actor with a tiny gesture only another actor would pick up on. It also helps out with understanding people and I already understood what Luca was gonna say.

"Look Kai I'm gonna be honest and just say that I can't do that. I'm... just not ready to say who was in my motive video. Please don't take it the wrong way. It's just..." Luca paused as he looked away shamefully.

I should be mad that he doesn't want to share his secret when he outright asked about mine. But I couldn't help but let a small grin appear at the corner of my lips. "No you don't need to explain. I'm sure whoever it is must be very important that you wish to protect them during your time here. I feel the same. But I also want to trust those around me. So in that case my most important person is Terry Bobinski who I'm sure you know is the only agent and bodyguard I've had for my entire career." I told him. I saw the stunned expression on him as soon as I told him about my motive video and how he was captured right under my nose and how I could have helped him if I had only turned around.

I stepped forward and looked into his seafoam eyes. He stared right back as we had a silent exchange before I broke the air with my words. "There you have it. You now know who it is that I'm going to be fighting to save and who you could use against me. I'm gonna go now but remember I am trusting you not to take advantage of me. It'll be on your head if anything happens to me so be careful with what you do and if I do end up dead by your hands then I'll be sure to make sure I drag you down to hell with me. Even if I'm already there. I'll catch you later Luca." I waved to him as I walked away.

I looked back to him once and saw his face. He looked conflicted with what just transpired between us and I was glad I left him feeling that way. I showed him I have the utmost trust in him now that I've put my life quite literally in his hands and yet he couldn't do the same with me. It hurt. To be so willing to share my secret and yet he couldn't bring himself to do the same. I don't want to say it but the last thing I want is to reconsider who is a friend and who isn't.

I wanted to get that off my mind so I wandered the school to look for something to do. I soon found myself in rec room with a few of the others already gathered there. Brenda, Mikayla, and Sienna were all there playing a round of pool. Well Mikayla and Brenda were. Sienna was just watching from the sidelines, cheering Mikayla on. From the looks of it Mikayla was about to win with her taking aim at the last solid colored ball which was the the number eight. She aligned the white ball and jabbed it making it bounce at a perfect angle off two of the walls and slammed the eight ball into the hole, sealing her victory.

"Oh yeah!" Mikayla shouted throwing a fist up victoriously.

Brenda laughed as she looked over to her in amazement. "Holy crap! How did you manage that shot?" She asked.

"Simple geometry." She said with a voice that somewhat sounded like a Japanese man.

"Yay! Way to go Big Sis!" Sienna cheered happily.

I smiled at them before making my way to the love couch in the room. I sat down and grabbed a Time magazine and began reading. I could tell it was outdated by a few weeks as it was taking about the new Hope's Peak on the cover. I was reading into an article I happened to find about me when I heard my name.

"Kai! Wanna go a round?" Mikayla called over.

I looked up from the magazine and smiled. "Thanks but I'll pass."

"You sure? I've played Brenda three times now and I haven't had a challenge since I won all three times." Mikayla inquired.

"Hey!" Brenda growled.

It was a moment before I shrugged. "Sure but I doubt I'll be much of a challenge either." I set the magazine down and made my way over.

Brenda quickly ran up to me and shoved her stick into my hands and chest so hard it made me recoil back a bit. She leaned in very close to my ear and whispered, "Now she likes to go for angles a lot. Try to mess with her openings if you have the opportunity."

I chuckled a bit at her but nodded my understanding as Mikayla set the game back up, aligning all the balls in their starting positions.

"While we play how about we talk? I wanna get to know you guys better!" Mikayla offered.

"Sure. It'll make the game less quiet." I agreed as Mikayla gestured for me to take the first turn which I did. I shot the white ball forward and it smashed into the others scattering them around. Somehow I managed to knock the number 12 ball into the back corner of the pool table. Mikayla stepped forward and took aim at the number five ball that would easily be hit into a hole directly in front of it.

"So who will start off?" Mikayla asked as she took the shot and easily sunk the ball in.

Brenda raised her hand. "Oh! Oh! Oh! Kai, I've always wanted to ask you a couple of things!"

"Go for it." I told her as I looked around for a shot I could take.

While we continued playing I took time to answer as many questions as Brenda asked, which was a lot!

I answered a lot of things I had already told Luca before and more. Such as what it was like when I became very popular in the radar, what my favorite things about the job were, and how it was working with very specific celebrities.

Brenda was jotting down my answers on a notepad with a pen like a journalist would as she stared at me intently. "So Kai what I wanna know next is...?"

But I didn't give her the time to finish as I looked over to her as I took a shot but missed. "Brenda please. I appreciate that you want to get to know me so well but I also want to know more about you guys too."

She blinked as she slammed the notepad shut. "Alright then. Ask me a question. In fact ask all of us one question at a time and make things more interesting."

Mikayla was lining up her shot as I began thinking about my question for her. I quickly came up with hers as Mikayla slammed the white ball into her number seven ball and bounced it off the wall and sunk it into the back corner of the table. She only had three more of her solid colored balls left before the number eight while I had five.

"So you've told me a lot about your collections in general but not really how you got into it. Care to tell us?" I asked as I began looking for an opening around some of Mikayla's balls.

Brenda looked up lightly tapping her index finger against her bottom lip. 'Was that question really that difficult to answer?' I couldn't help but wonder as she stayed like that for almost a minute. Not even exaggerating.

"Well I can't quite remember if this was it or not but I think it was when I was in second grade. Honestly I always loved collecting things for as long as I can remember but I think my true passion started back then. I recall finding a rock during recess and it looked like it was diamond or something but me being so young I wasn't able to tell what it was. But regardless I showed it off to my friends during class. They were so impressed by it and I liked the feeling of being recognized and at the center of attention. Soon I found myself finding more unique looking rocks and began showing them off. Pretty soon showing off rocks then evolved into trading cards, then eventually I began collecting more items when I saw a popularity in them spike up."

I nodded silently as I lined up a shot, took it, and sank a ball in. "So basically you started off as an attention hog?"

She blushed as she rubbed her arm. "Kinda. I believe that's how it started but then my perspective on it changed. I did it because I liked the attention it brought me, then I found out how much fun I had when making collections, but then I discovered something even more amazing than I thought. I learned how my collections brought people together."

I looked up to her with a raise of my eyebrow. "How do your collections bring people together?"

Brenda looked a bit dumbfounded as Mikayla began looking for a shot to take since I put her in a tough situation where the white ball was basically surrounded by my striped balls. "Well you do have to show off your collections to be the Ultimate Collector. When my collections got too big to store in my room, my family surprised me with a giant shed my father hired some construction workers to build that would store all my collections. Once I got my current collections inside and continued building them up I invited friends over to see them. They begged me to let them bring families and friends over to see them and they brought their friends and families and so on and so forth."

"Soon my backyard was crowded with complete strangers when word got around about my collections. I watched everyone as they came in to view what I gathered for my completed collections and I soon noticed something. My collections was making people happy. Not in the sense that they were happy to see my dedication to my collections and having a sense of awe when they see them but another way. They were meeting people with similar hobbies and making new friends with complete strangers that viewed the same collections as others were. I saw countless people walking out, talking about their favorite book series, video games, and other subjects surrounding a collection I had on display. I saw this was like a museum except my collection of art was more wide ranged and drew more people in for personal reasons. I discovered that collecting made people congregate, happy, and make easy friends. That's why I love my collections more than anything and why I still drive myself to make them perfect!" She finished.

"Wow that's astounding." I said to her. Mikayla cleared her throat loudly which made me look at her to see she had already taken her turn since she had one ball less than before. I began prepping up for my turn as I saw a perfect opening for me to take. "So which collection would you say is very popular?"

"Well there are a lot but one of the more shocking ones would have to be my collection of human parts I keep in jars." Brenda said calmly.

My eyes shot wide open as I looked at her in disbelief. "WHAT?" I screamed as I felt my hand slip and I accidentally hit the white ball making it spin out and somehow hit Mikayla's final ball into a hole. I couldn't believe what I just did as I dropped my head. "Dang it."

Mikayla and Sienna began laughing at me like crazy while Brenda, who didn't realize my mishap at the moment, also chuckled at my reaction. " _Fake_ human parts." She emphasized. "Used them for Halloween decorations one year and my house was the most popular house on the street."

"Well glad you said that earlier!" I stated sarcastically as Mikayla easily lined up her final shot and easily won the game because of my slip up. Brenda blinked when she saw me lose. "Wait what just happened? Weren't you suppose to win Kai?" She asked bewildered.

We all laughed again as I shook Mikayla's hand congratulating her. We all decided we'd go sit down for a while after the game. I sat down on the love couch, a longer couch to my left that formed an L with the love couch was where Mikayla and Sienna opted to sit, while Brenda plopped down on one of the big bean bag chairs resting on the ground in front of us.

"So now I know a little more about Brenda..." I paused as I looked over my remaining choices and smiled at Sienna before continuing. "...so I'd like to learn more about you Sienna." The girl seemed to freeze up a bit as she hid herself from me by scooting closer to Mikayla.

Mikayla quickly turned to her and held onto her shoulders. "Remember what we practiced Sienna. If you want to talk to other people then just pretend it's someone you're comfortable with talking too." She said to her in a hush tone to most likely help her calm down.

Sienna nodded as she closed her eyes. She soon began breathing like a monk during meditation. I soon saw a smile appear on her face as she whispered something intangible for me to hear. Mikayla sighed out happily and looked to me with a nod, confirming for me to continue.

I nodded back as I had begun to think about possible topics Sienna could talk about. One came to mind. "Tell me about your performances. Any particular ones that really stood out for you?" I asked her.

Keeping her eyes closed Sienna nodded silently before speaking up. "I remember my performance back in Tokyo a couple years ago. It was grand. So many people were there and I was so terrified going on but soon Mommy thought of a way that I could perform without being scared something I had never tried in an actual competition. She told me to close my eyes for my entire performance."

I blinked in shock. "Really? She suggested that? Isn't that dangerous for figure skaters?" I questioned with concern in my voice. But she simply nodded as she continued. "Absolutely. Seeing when you're gonna land after jumping is critical but if you memorize the size of the ice rink and the timing of the moves with the muscle's reaction time with take off and landing then doing a performance while basically blinded is no trouble. At least it works for me."

"It's because of that performance that got me recognized by Hope's Peak and how I gained the title "The Blind Ice Dancer". But I was never blind despite my eyes staying closed because I could always see Mommy's face and her loving smile. That's the only reason I perform perfectly everytime I dance. Because I know no matter what Mommy will always love me."

I smiled sweetly at her. "That's really amazing. What about your dad?" I asked but suddenly her eyes flashed open and her body began lightly shaking as if a chill just ran down her spine. Suddenly Mikayla held her close. "I think Sienna is done talking. My turn!" She cheerfully hollered out.

Somehow I feel like I went to a sensitive topic and Mikayla was making sure it wasn't brought up. Now I felt bad but obviously I would save the apology for later.

"Okay then. So Mikayla how is it that you came to be a veterinarian? Like how'd you get your start?" I asked her.

She slightly smiled as she looked up. She seemed to be lost in thoughts all alone for a moment before she spoke. "My family actually went on a camping vacation in the woods far from town in Minnesota. We were having a fun two weeks together but I remember one night waking up and having to go to the bathroom. I snuck out of the tent and went into the fifth-wheel to use the bathroom but when I was heading back to the tent I heard a distant cry. My curiosity got the better of my nine year old mind and I ventured into the forest."

I had a feeling things were going to get real very soon so I sat myself up and looked at her kinda nervously. She continued. "Eventually I found what I heard after quite a while of walking. It was a lone wolf caught in a trap. The poor thing was hurt and I could tell he had given up on fighting since it made little movement. He looked over at me and I saw he was quite old too."

"How could you tell what age and sex he was?" I interrupted her by asking the question. "My mom had been teaching me a lot about determining things about animals such as age and gender. I was able to see his belly and privates to see that he was male. Also with how big and yet frail he seemed he looked about 13 years old which is the normal lifetime feral wolves can reach. Anyways I gently approached him the way I was taught and at first the wolf growled at me but was too weak to actually do anything. I made my way to him as fast as I could and soon I got to the trap and somehow pried it open. The wolf immediately ran off and I soon found myself looking around in shock. I didn't remember where I came from and as a result ended up lost."

I gasped audibly but Mikayla only chuckled hearing it. "That's not even the worse part. After wandering aimlessly I soon happen to come across an entire wolf pack and the way they were snarling and circling me I knew they wanted food and that I was going to be the main course. I tried to run but they quickly caught me and began biting at me. I honestly thought I would die but then out of nowhere the same wolf I had helped attacked my attackers. The pack backed off a bit and the pack leader and my wolf just stared each other down. I later realized that my wolf was left behind by the pack and he was probably a lone wolf for quite some time. Soon they began fighting but the pack leader was much younger and too strong for my wolf. I quickly grabbed a thick branch off the ground and began swinging. Somehow between the wolf and me swinging that branch we actually chased the pack off."

"But I was bleeding pretty badly from the bite marks I got from the pack. I torn parts of my shirt to use as bandages and I was even able to wrap one around the wolf's leg and neck where he was hurt. It was so late and I was so tired I went to lie down and rest. That's when the wolf came up and cuddled close to me keeping me warm that night. I woke up the next morning to hear distant voices crying out my name. My family had been searching all night when my big brother, Andrew, and little sister, Ashley, found I was missing. They found me lying there with my wolf on top of me. At first they thought he killed me but when they saw me stirring they knew it didn't hurt me since I didn't seem scared. They brought me and the wolf back and got me to the hospital while my mom took the wolf to be treated at her animal clinic. I told them all what happened to me and at first it was unbelievable. But because of the heroic actions me and the wolf took to protect each other, my family allowed me to keep the wolf as a pet. I was the only one to take care of him because that's what I asked. I treated him, fed him, and played with him. I even got to name him and I called him Ulmar simply becauseI liked the name and it seemed fitting. I couldn't take him outside the house unfortunately. The neighbors always tried to file a case or do something that would put him out in the wild where he should be but my family always fought back. It didn't last long though. I had Ulmar for two years before he died of old age. But because of the time I spent with him that gave me the motivation to really help my mom out in her clinic and soon enough I was working full time along her side." Mikayla finished her story leaving me gaping at her.

"Wow. That's just... wow." I muttered in disbelief.

"I know. I was actually called out by quite a few people that I was just making it up. I would prove them wrong by showing them photos on my phone but as we know Monokuma took all our phones away." Mikayla lightly chuckled.

"No it's not that I don't believe you. It's just that story is so unbelievable in the sense of how amazing it is. You saved a wolf from a hunter's trap, get attacked by his old pack, then get saved by him, fight off the pack and survived the cold night on top of that? It's astounding!" I told her.

She smiled kindly as I saw a faint blush come across her cheeks. "Thanks."

Brenda looked between me and Mikayla as we silently stared at each other and suddenly shouted out to break the silence. "Okay! I don't know about you all but all this chatting has gotten me hungry! I am starving! Anyone else?"

Sienna held her stomach. "I'm kinda feeling hungry."

Mikayla smiled at Sienna. "Sure. Let's all get some lunch." Brenda's sudden outburst still had caught me off guard but I nodded in agreement since I was actually feeling pretty hungry myself.

We all made our way to the cafeteria and made ourselves lunch. A few of the others were there as well as we sat down, ate, and talked a little bit more. I soon separated from the girls and began making my way out when I felt stuffed like turkey stuffing.

Soon I found myself walking outside the cafeteria when I saw Paul approaching me. I groaned as I tried to quickly walk by but he stepped in front of me and blocked me from going past him. "Can you move?" I sighed.

"Not until we speak with you. Alone." Paul's voice was dark and threatening. He was basically saying he wasn't giving me a choice but I wasn't going to give in. "Look I want to spend time with my friends. Not with heartless people like you and Melinda."

"That's actually what we wish to speak to you about. Besides I know you'll come with me." Paul told me.

I scoffed at him. "Oh? And why's that?"

"Because I have information on you that I could leak to the media right now that I know you want to keep secret." My eyes widened at him in shock before they narrowed in disgust. He then continued. "And if forcing you by a mental state somehow doesn't work I do have another way to force you. Physically."

Suddenly I felt a knife get placed on top of my throat and an arm hook under my left arm, holding it back as I felt someone pull me back against them. But I knew it was Melinda. She's the only person here who we know would have any weapons on them at all times. I looked at Paul and could only smile. "I'm calling out your bluff. I know you won't kill me. You're little alliance is to ensure you guys don't take part in the killings. So your threat isn't going to work."

He cocked his head with a look of intrigue on it before responding. "True. I won't let her kill you. But that doesn't mean she can't inflict enough pain that would also keep you alive now would she?" I heard Melinda giggle as she raised the knife to my cheek and gently prodded the tip against it. I sighed in defeat knowing I was beat no matter what I said or tried. Paul saw this loss in my expression and chuckled. "Invasion of your privacy and a personal enforcer is so much fun. Now come to the library."

I forced myself free from Melinda's grasp as I began walking forward with Paul in front and Melinda behind. We eventually made our way to the library and entered. There I saw it wasn't just us. It was their entire little group that Paul forged at the class trial as Ollie and Marcel were sitting down at one of the square tables. "Sit." He ordered me like I was another one of his lap dogs but having no real agency right now I took a seat next to Ollie. She lightly waved at me with a smile despite seeing my displeased face. 'Can this girl really not take a hint?' I thought angrily.

Paul and Melinda took their seats to the left of me as Paul set his laptop down in front of him. He peered over at me as he slowly opened his laptop. He must be flaunting the fact that he has total control of the situation right now.

"Now let's get down to business." Paul opened but suddenly Marcel popped out of his seat to shout, "To defeat... the Huns!"

Marcel then opened his eyes to see all of us blankly staring at him as he slowly sat back down, completely embarrassed.

Paul continued after a silent moment to further make Marcel uncomfortable as punishment for his outburst most likely. "Anyways we are here to discuss things with our new friend Kai."

I glared at him. "New friend? Since when have we been friends?"

"Since now. Or at least you have the opportunity to do so as long as you provide the correct answer we're hoping to get from you." Paul replied. I looked at him confused. "What do you mean?"

Melinda smiled. "Basically we want you to join us."

I felt multiple emotions welling up in me at that second. Anger, shock, disbelief to name a few. "Like hell I would join you guys!"

"You haven't even heard our proposition." Paul blankly stated. I shot my sharp gaze at Sharpe. "I don't care. You could promise me the world and I wouldn't do it!"

Suddenly I felt a hand touch my wrist and I looked to my right to see Ollie. Her silver eyes were kindly asking me to calm down. I quickly glanced over at Melinda to see her smiling with her knife out as she thumbed the edge of it. I lightly growled before taking my seat and staying silent. Ollie looked thankful that I complied as did Paul but not Melinda who groaned as she sheathed her knife.

"Now then as I was saying. Yes we do want you to join us. I can already see so much potential with you. You single-handedly solved the first class trial and found out Evelyn was the blackened." He started but I was quick to interrupt him. "I didn't solve it myself. Everyone contributed especially people like Mikayla and Luca."

"True but you were the one who basically ran the show. Which is only fair since the Ultimate Actor would be the one in the spotlight to outshine the rest. Even people like me and Melinda were not able to do the things you did despite out superior talents." I was glaring daggers at him as Paul continued. "You connected the clues and solved each question, mystery, and lie that was brought up. You are ultimately the reason we survived the class trial and I can assure you that the five of us can survive this whole killing game. If we all stick together and stay away from the rest of them we will win."

I looked at him. "What do you mean stay away from them?"

"Simple we have as little interactions with them as possible. They'll all eventually kill each other off. Monokuma will find a way to push one of us over the edge but we'll stay strong and they'll break under all that pressure he puts on them. With you acting as our detective we'll easily survive every class trial that they put us in. So with that being said we trust you will make the right and smart choice. If for what ever reason you decide not to help us I can assure you things will be very difficult for you since you'll have no one to trust when the next murder happens."

Things were heavy in the air as he let that sink into me. My hands tightly gripped my knees as I was looking down at my lap. "You're wrong." I muttered.

He blinked. "Excuse me?"

"I said you're wrong." I looked up with a determined face. "I'll always have others I can trust. Not because of a cult pact that was formed by a shady hacker and a cold-blooded hunter but because of the friendships I'm making! I'll always have friends to back me up! I had Luca and Mikayla helping me. I had Jayden and Helen and even Evelyn looking out for me and everyone!"

"You do realize Evelyn killed those two for her own purpose and we all would have died because of her, right?" Paul questioned me rudely.

"Yeah she did but only because not only was Monokuma pushing her we all pushed her past her breaking point. And it doesn't matter if your in a group that promises you'll not kill to survive this messed up game, everyone has a breaking point and if Monokuma gets at it even you guys are capable of killing someone just like Evelyn was." I pushed myself out of my seat and stood up. "If I joined this group I'd only be isolating myself from the potential friends I have here and yet still be just as vulnerable to killing someone else as if I wasn't a part of it. Not to mention I feel like I'd be just your mascot with you running the show like a director. Or more like the hacker that you are, playing cheap and underhanded tricks to get what you want."

I turned and began walking away making my answer all too clear. I heard a reverberating sound vibrate quietly as I looked back and saw Melinda had unsheathed her knife again and was making a move at me. I would have panicked and booked it had Paul not grabbed her wrist, stopping her. He silently shook his head informing her to just let me go. He closed his laptop as he began making his way out. He bumped me when I didn't move out of his way as Melinda quickly followed like a mindless bitch to her master.

Marcel was next to leave giving me a worried look as he walked out. Soon I was walking again but was stopped by a voice behind me. "Do you really think that?" Ollie asked me. "Do you really think we're not safe in our group?"

I sighed as I looked back. "Honestly no. Everyone can be tricked or deceived. No one is safe not even from a menace like Monokuma no matter the numbers. Helen tried to rally us together but even when it was basically sixteen to one he found a weakness in one link that broke the chain. Your chain of four has a weak link in it somewhere. It'll only be a matter of time before Monokuma exposes it and breaks it." With that said I left Ollie alone in the library and made my way back to my dorm.

I was almost there before Luca's door opened. I desperately tried to find a way to hide from him but there was nowhere to hide and it was all happening too fast. Luca stepped out of his room and we made eye contact immediately. We stared at each other, frozen statues not able to move, breathe, think, or act as the awkward silence was easily felt tenfold.

I soon saw him blink rapidly as he looked away in shame. He quickly closed his door behind him, locked it up, and hurried away without looking back. I let out a breath of annoyance as I quickly unlocked my dorm and went in. I quickly collapsed on my bed and just laid there.

Hours seem to go by and they very well must have because the next thing I knew was the nighttime announcement playing. I spent the entire afternoon locked up in my room but it would be understandable if someone was in my shoes. Despite it now being 10 PM I wasn't tired. Or at least I didn't feel like I was but I closed my eyes regardless of whether or not I was sleepy and soon lulled myself to sleep with a soft tune playing in the back of my head.

* * *

 _There we are! I am so sorry it took so long to get this chapter out but I had most of it written out but then I lost it all immediately. I was so devastated about it that I lost the motivation to rewrite it all but I pushed myself to do so little by little. Also work has been eating up so much of my time as well as the stress of said job. As the saying goes being an adult is all work and no fun! Anyways I hope you liked the chapter and let me know what you thought and what you hope to see next! Any characters you want to see Kai interact with next? Let me know via reviews! And as always see you next time for another spotless day! Or will it? Puhuhuhu~_


	11. Chapter 2 Part 3: Day 8

**Three Days Later**

 **Day 8**

 _ ***Ding Dong Bing Bong***_

I was soon awoken by the morning announcement and growled as I threw the pillow over my head to tune out Monokuma's irritable voice. I was very annoyed these last few days ever since I rejected Paul's offer to join his little cult. He and Melinda did everything they could to either guilt trip me with my decision or make me reconsider it. I was getting sick of hearing it so I've locked myself in my room from everyone and snuck out at an hour when no one would be at the cafeteria so I could get food.

The great thing was I wasn't being disturbed by the Ultimate Hacker or his ragtag posse but I was so bored having locked myself up these last three days. Not to mention I haven't contributed at all to finding a way out of this academic prison we're trapped in. I do feel bad for blocking myself from all my friends too so I decided to head on out of my dorm and help out. Maybe I'll chat to more of the others and get to know the others more now.

I soon hopped out of bed and got myself looking presentable when I heard a doorbell. I blinked in shock as I walked to the door, hoping it wouldn't be Paul, anyone associated with him, or even Luca. Sure I made it look like I wasn't upset with him for not telling me his motive video's content but I was in truth. Still am actually. I was willing to divulge my motive to him yet he couldn't do the same for me? Was I wrong in thinking I could trust him? I hope not.

I answered the door to find Sienna there. Alone. Without Mikayla. "Hey Kai." The small girl said looking up at me.

"Um... hi?" I responded a bit bewildered.

"I came by to see if you were okay." Sienna told me. "You've been gone for a few days now and I was getting worried."

I smiled at her. "I'm better now. I was just a bit under the weather. Didn't want to spread something around." I fibbed. I didn't want her to think I was purposefully avoiding the others.

Sienna looked down. "It's just that... Things have been kinda lonely without you. A lot of us look up to you and admire you. You bring something... nice when we see your smile. I don't know what it is. Maybe it's something to do with you being a celebrity or something. I really have no clue but whatever it is I like it and I miss it."

I soon knelt down in front of her and placed my hand on her head. "I'm sorry. I promise I'll be out here where you can see me from now on."

She soon smiled like she smiled at Mikayla. She suddenly grabbed my hand and pulled me to the cafeteria where everyone else had congregated.

"Well look who decided to join us." Shana growled.

Sienna looked to her. "Kai's feeling a lot better! He can finally join us!"

"Mmhm." Shana hummed with a look of utter disbelief at me as she continued eating her food.

I felt my throat catch a bit as I cleared it out with a inward cough. I soon grabbed myself a plate and made my breakfast. I sat down with Mikayla, Sienna, Damian, Willie, Luca, and Brenda. I spoke to the others and told them about me being sick but avoided conversation with Luca as he seemed to be doing the same thing.

Pretty soon breakfast was done and we all began separating but before we did I saw Tommy and Shana walking over. "Hey guys." I waved to them.

Shana spoke up. "Just so you're aware I didn't want to talk to you but Tommy insisted we chat with you since it has been a while since we last saw you."

"You wanted to talk with me?" I asked a bit shocked.

Tommy nodded. "Of course! You and I have had some great time chatting but I hadn't seen you in a while so I figured now would be a good time to continue where we left off."

"Oh sure! But where should we talk?" I asked. Shana would be the one to answer. "We're going to the gym to try and find something that might help us escape whether it's an opening or some kind of tool. Since you've been helping all of us out by sitting on your ass all day I figured you would help us while we talked."

I slightly cringed at her harsh words. "S-Sorry."

Tommy quickly spoke up. "I'm sure whatever the reason is it was good enough for wanting to be left alone." Shana squinted her eyes at Tommy for a second before she walked away. Tommy and I shrugged as we followed suit.

We soon made it to the gym and Shana took charge as she began ordering us around like an army commander to her petty soldiers that got stuck in her squad. She had me check the windows and flooring to see if there were any cracks that we could use to get out. Tommy was searching around the boys locker room and the bleachers while Shana checked the girls locker room and the storage rooms.

After looking for an hour we decided to take a break when we all came back empty handed. We were feeling a bit hungry from the search and Tommy offered to grab some snacks from the school store. Shana glared at him and it was obvious why that would be. He quickly picked up on this and promised to show that he would have anything lethal on him when he returned.

After a few minutes of Shana and I just sitting their awkwardly not saying anything, Tommy soon returned and placed the three granola bars he had down and emptied his pockets. I soon saw he had a lot of small fossils in his many vest pockets, various tools he most likely used out on the field, and the magnifying glass I saw him use the first day we all met. I also saw grains of sand fall out and chuckled.

"Guess you like to keep things messy too don't ya?" I joked but I saw the icy glare shooting me down from Shana and I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. Tommy didn't seem to mind though as he also lightly laughed. "Yeah. I was in the Canadian badlands for my last expedition just a few days before I arrived here. I didn't have time to wash my clothes. Besides carrying fossils around doesn't exactly help either." He admitted, looking a bit embarrassed.

To avoid saying anything else that would further make things weird I snatched one of the chocolate chip granola bars Tommy brought and began eating it. Shana grabbed the other chocolate chip one and Tommy happily took the oatmeal and fruit one that was left over. We ate in silence for a minute which didn't help ease the tense atmosphere we all were feeling. I decided I would try to break it by speaking to Shana first.

"So Shana I'd like to take the time to learn more about you since we're on break right now." I said to her. She opened one eye at me as she continued chewing the snack in her mouth. After a minute she swallowed as she opened her eyes, not facing me at all. "If we're going to do so then make it an easy topic that I can discuss fast. We need to keep looking for a way out."

"Right. So then something I was curious about is when you last showered." I immediately regretted wording my question in such a way as her head bolted in my direction as she seemed to somehow grow horns and catch fire. "What the hell do you mean by that you pervert!" She screamed. Tommy seemed to almost choke on his granola bar at our exchange, not from laughter but from fear.

"No! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to word it like that! I just meant that it doesn't really look like you try to keep yourself clean considering you are still covered in dried up dirt. I mean have you even used the shower in your room?" I quickly rephrased myself. She seemed to calm down a bit but huffed as she looked away again.

"As a matter of fact no I haven't. What's the point of making myself clean?" She asked me. I scratched my cheek lightly feeling nervous. I felt like I probably wasn't going to get anywhere with her but I pressed on. "Well so you can make yourself look presentable to other people. You do that you could make so many friends."

Her head slowly turned to me and I instinctually braced myself in case she was about to thrash me but I saw calm eyes, a stern expression, and a small frown. All of those features made up one lightly confused face. "Why would I want to do that?" This follow up question caught me off guard as I saw Shana shift her body to face me more. I knew by this gesture she was about to open up.

"I honestly can never keep myself clean no matter how much I try to clean up because I work with my father everyday in his mines. Besides it's not like I would want to change that. I like getting messy and sure I've been made fun of at school for not keeping myself clean but that's not exactly something that bugs me. I won't try putting on a mask to hide myself so others will like me. I like who I am and if people don't like me then I have no reason to acknowledge what they do or say."

Shana finished speaking which left me and Tommy smiling at her. "That's really amazing of you." I admitted.

Shana rolled her eyes at me. "Oh please it's how most everyone here works. It's nothing special. Just look at Melinda and Paul. They're not afraid of showing their true colors. Also I don't know when I will be outta here so I'm gonna stay like this to keep me feeling more comfrotable."

"Well," Tommy spoke up, "I still think it's awesome that you aren't ashamed of who you are. I wish I could be proud of myself." Shana and I both looked to each other then over to him in disbelief.

"Why do you think that? Surely you are proud of your talent and the discoveries you made as a paleontologist." I said feeling worry well up in me.

"Oh no I am proud of my time as a paleontologist but I mean I am ashamed of my normal self." Tommy replied. He looked up to see our confused expressions and chuckled lightly before he continued.

"You see I went to this fortune teller sometime after I had discovered my first fossil on the museum property. A friend had offered me a pass to see him since he made frequent visits to this guy, praising how much he helped him. I was skeptical about it at first because I had to do it online since this fortune teller lived in Japan and had a thirty percent chance of getting correct predictions. Anyways what I expected to happen was a bunch of voodoo hippie BS, a prediction that wouldn't be remotely close to coming true, and for the guy to charge me a ridiculous amount of money."

"I bet the guy was a total scam." Shana growled.

"That's what I had thought at the time too when my parents paid him. Little did I know that I actually was one of the thirty percent of people whose predictions would come true." Tommy said sadly.

My eyes narrowed a bit. "Why do you say that? What did this clairvoyant say to you?"

Tommy cracked a sad smile. "He told me that I have been granted incredible luck with my talents to find fossils but due to having such amazing luck the universe decided to balance it out and also grant me the worse luck when it comes to my everyday life."

"But you can't seriously believe that idiot was telling the truth." Shana responded angry.

"I didn't believe it at all until I was twelve when my parents finally allowed me to go on those excavations. The first day I got back all my friends hadn't bothered to see me return. In fact they only dropped by to beat me up. I haven't been able to make any new friends since then, I haven't had a date or girlfriend ever, and my relationship with my family seems to be dwindling away slowly. And to top it all off I finally thought my luck would change when I was invited to become a student here only to find myself trapped in a killing game. If that isn't bad luck then I don't know what would even come close to that."

I straightened myself to look at him directly in the face. "Listen to me, Tommy. I think your letting this prediction of yours get to your head. Sure you've had it rough but everyone has a difficult life. It's nothing to worry about. If you let yourself think something is real then you make it real."

Tommy was still bearing that weeping smile of his as he shook his head at me. "I know what you're trying to do Kai and though I appreciate you trying to help, I'm afraid this is the real deal. I didn't think about that prediction for years and then it just happens to come true? I'm just a lucky guy with his career who has an unlucky streak with everything else as well. I can never catch a break, never get friends, never get a girlfriend, never..."

Before I could even process what happened next Shana rose up from her seat and decked Tommy so hard he fell near the edge of the pool. I panicked with how close he was to falling in. Shana on the other hand didn't seem too concerned about that at the moment. Tommy also looked just as shocked as me as he just realized his glasses had been knocked off. He was quick to find them and checked to see if they were damaged.

He then looked up at Shana who just glared down at him. "Just shut your damn mouth. You think you don't have friends? Well guess what you have them! Us! All of us are in this fucking killing game not just you! Don't you dare think for one moment you should feel sorry for yourself when we are all in the same predicament dammit! You should consider yourself lucky for multiple reasons. You're lucky you haven't died like three of our friends had, that you have friends here who want to help you just as much as they want to help themselves, and you should be extra lucky that I didn't just get you killed just now."

Tommy looked behind him at the pool and shivered despite not actually getting wet. He slowly put his glasses back on as Shana knelt down in front of him. "All you think about are the negatives of your life. If you just try to see things in the light then your life would be a lot more... brighter." Suddenly Shana flipped the switch on her helmet and shot the light down into Tommy's face. He recoiled with a shout, turning his eyes from her. She quickly turned it back off and soon began laughing loudly.

I didn't really see the amusement in blinding someone but after he regained composure of himself, Tommy was laughing too. Shana soon fell to her back, laughing even harder and gripping her sides. Then out of nowhere I felt something well up in my gut. It felt like I was slightly coughing but soon realized it was me trying not to laugh. But seeing those two laughing it up made me eventually bust a gut as I soon joined them as our laughter echoed throughout the pool area. We tried to stop but couldn't find the strength to do so. We were nothing but hyenas at this point.

After what felt like ages, we eventually died down as our laughter dwindled into a sound of silence. When we fully composed ourselves we looked to one another and we all smiled at each other for a moment. Despite the ferocity Shana displayed towards me and Tommy I felt like I have really gotten to know them better. We soon got ourselves back to our feet as we searched around the pool for an hour but once again having no luck so we called the search for a way out off for now.

I decided to just stop by in my dorm for a quick nap. Once I got to the dormitory hallway I went to my door to unlock it. I stepped in and approached my bed looking forward to resting my eyes for an hour or two.

However my train of thought was quickly halted when my doorbell rang in my ears. I turned back around and answered the door. To my surprise no one was there. I looked down the hallway and down the corridor to the cafeteria and could not see anyone. 'Must have been Marcel or someone playing a dumb prank,' I thought as I shut the door and began walking back to the bed.

But then the doorbell rang again! I let loose an internal growl and stomped back to the door, open it, and once again see no one! I was starting to get really pissed off at this. This time I closed the door and waited right there with my hand already on the golden globe knob, ready to catch whoever was bugging me.

I waited for a few minutes before I grew impatiently frustrated. I soon gave in as I took my hand off the door and turned away. Then the doorbell sounded and I immediately spun back and opened the door in that instant! Only to find the hallway completely deserted like nothing had stepped foot on it. I sighed. "Maybe I was just imagining it." I said to myself.

"Maybe it's the Ghost of Christmas Past?" A voice whispered directly in my ear from behind.

I leapt forward with a startled yelp out the door to see Monokuma hovering in the air in my room. My eyes narrowed at him as he cooed evilly. "Aw sorry Kai boy! I couldn't resist messing with you. Which includes this hologram." Suddenly the floating Monokuma vanished in a whirl of fuzzy static before flickering away like he was an old television that was turned off.

"Besides I wanted your opinion on something." His voice sounded from behind me again. I twirled around in shock once more as I growled at him. "Will you cut that out!" I demanded him.

"Then stop being such a pussycat! Sheesh. No one can ever have fun with an uptight actor." I only glared him down as he continued. "Well anyway I need your help."

I nearly snorted at him. "And why the hell would I do that?" I exasperated. He simply laughed. "Because if you don't I have the grounds to expel you from this academy." His red eye quickly lit up as his cutesy voice was now dark and low. "And from this life. Capiche?" Seeing as I realized it was against the rules to defy a direct order from the supposed headmaster I responded with a nod.

"Good! In that case!" He then quickly disappeared. Before I could register what would happen next.

 ** _*Ding Dong Bing Bong*_**

An announcement suddenly rang out on the monitors throughout the school. "Attention students! I have an exciting announcement and Kai Brugger has offered to help me with this exciting announcement for you all! Please meet up in the auditorium in five minutes! Puhuhuhu!" The screen went black as soon as it turned on. I felt my blood boil but at the same time turn cold at that. That damn bear just set me up! I immediately ran my way to the auditorium.

I got there within a minute with how fast I was running. I slammed the doors open and rushed in towards a few of the already congregated classmates of mine who all wore suspicious looks at me.

"So that's your game is it? You sided with the bear?" Paul spat at me. I tried to reply but needed to catch my breath. I hadn't run that hard since the time I was recording a movie where I played a victim in a serial killer movie and was the last survivor, only to die at the end of the film. Before I could speak up I was knocked over. I looked up to see Willie had been the one to do so. "I don't git you Kai. I thought you were gonna try and help us outta here. Guess I was wrong to trust a white-eyed, lily-livered snake like yurself."

"No you guys got it wrong! Monokuma is making it seem like we are working together! He only approached me and.." But I was cut off by the door slamming open as Shana stomped in as steam blew from her nose at the sight of me. "Why I outta smack the hell out of you for this big shot!"

"I'll be more than happy to assist you, sweetie." Melinda cooed. Shana glared over to her. "Shut it pig shit! He's mine."

Before anyone else could do anything I saw the rest of the class come running in. Brenda and Tommy ran up and took hold of Shana's arm, holding her back as she kicked at me madly. "Let me go!" She screamed at them. "Please everyone stop! We don't know if this means anything!" Mikayla shouted out. "Like hell that announcement should be taken seriously! Kai is an awesome guy! I wouldn't lose any faith in him if I were any of you." Brenda defended me.

"Besides this is Monokuma were also talking about and he's the last one here I would ever believe. Except maybe those four, ya dig?" Damian said pointing to Paul and his group.

That's when I saw Luca step forward. "I haven't had a reason to doubt Kai before and I won't start now. Has anyone even heard Kai's side of the story yet?" The room went silent. "That's what I thought. You all jumped to conclusions about Kai's motive when Kai might know the real reason for that announcement."

"Did somebody say... motive?" Monokuma's voice echoed throughout the auditorium walls. We all looked over to the stage to see the same desk sitting there as Monokuma bounded up from behind and landed on top of it. "Glad to see all my students are getting along so swimmingly!"

"Getting along? E-Everyone's fight-ting each other." Sienna said cowardly as her body lightly trembled. "Shut up! If I say you're getting along swimmingly then just keep swimming you sons of fishes!"

"Was that suppose to be a pun as much as a sensor? Also did you just reference what I think you just did?" Brenda asked as she looked at a smiling clown fish pin she had on her vest. Monokuma chuckled. "Take it however you like! Anyways it's as the Ultimate Tracer said, 'Cheer Love! The Calvary's here!'."

Luca deadpanned at him. "Wrong traceur."

"Well close enough. Anyways it's just like he actually said about Kai's motive. In fact it's not just his motive, this one new motive is for all of you! And I chose Kai to be my lovely assistant since I know out of all you brain dead losers he'll know how to play the part." Monokuma sighed out happily.

"That's why he mentioned me in the announcement! That's the only reason! It's not like I want to cooperate with him but he left me no choice." I said a bit exaggeratedly at them. I saw most of everyone's faces soften into understanding, some looked at me with mild skepticism, and the rest looked like they didn't care too much. Bet I don't have to say who is who in those scenarios.

"Anyways Kai come on up to your place on the stage so we can get this show on the road!" Monokuma cheered. I sighed out in annoyance as I made my way up. I saw Luca and a few of the others try to make a move to stop this but I shook my head, making them stop as I continued up to my spot next to Monokuma. You would think that being the Ultimate Actor meant you need to be center stage but Monokuma did drop the word assistant earlier so I bet that was a cue to stand at his side instead. Looks like I was right.

"Good on you Kai! You decided to let little old me have the spotlight this time? I'm so honored. So now let's begin!" Monokuma leapt up as a red button appeared on the desk and he stomped down onto it. Quickly I saw three big ropes drop down from the ceiling. and stopped at different points on the stage. "Alrighty boys and girls! It's time for the next motive for your American Killing Game! But this time Kai here will choose the next motive for you all!"

'So the spotlight comes back on me and not in a good way.' I pondered for a moment as I saw the eyes of my peers shift to me again. "So then whenever someone dies we can thank Kai?" Paul asked Monokuma but was approached by Tommy. "He's being forced to choose dumbass! This is still all Monokuma's fault!"

"No! It'll be whoever kills that will be at fault! But the shenanigans that comes from a random motive is so thrilling to watch! I can't _bear_ it any longer! Go ahead and pull the lever Kai!" Monokuma told me. I breathed out heavily as I looked at each rope and decided it probably wouldn't matter anyway since they all most likely do the same thing so I went for the one stage left closest to me. Which in case you don't know theatrics is the left side of the stage the audience would be facing. I reached out and gave the rope a great big tug down. Suddenly I heard Monokuma shout as if he was falling. "WRONG LEVER!"

I would have been confused had I not heard a huge scuffle above me. I looked up in horror as I saw a giant blue canoe start falling down straight at me. I quickly jumped off stage without thinking as the canoe smashed into the stage with a thundering boom. I braced myself for the pain of crashing into the ground but found the landing to be kind of soft but still hurt. I slowly opened my eyes to see Luca underneath me. 'Did I just jump into him somehow?' I wondered in confusion. But after a second I realized no one was this close to the stage when I went up which meant that Luca must have ran up when the canoe started falling to try and help me. Then I once again realized that because I was taking so long to comprehend this, I was blankly staring at Luca with him staring back and everyone standing around us. They all stared at us with either relief or confusion tucked in the depths of their eyes.

I quickly pushed myself up and over to get off him so Luca could sit up. I looked away embarrassed as my cheeks burned up. "S-Sorry." I apologized to him.

He sat up and looked at me before looking down. "Just good to see you didn't get hurt."

We heard Monokuma moan on the stage as everyone looked back to him and what I didn't see about the canoe was now very visible as my eyes widened in fright. Monokuma popped out of the canoe that was filled to the brim with packets of $100 bills! He hugged a few wads close to his chest and sighed pleasurably. "Ahhhh~ There's nothing like one million smackeroons to get the next killing underway!"

I felt my body tingle with despair at the sight of that. "The next motive for us to kill is one million dollars?" I asked shakily. Monokuma began laughing crazily like before. "Yep! It's the next motive that you have chosen Kai! Bet that one stings don't it?"

I looked down in shame. Luca saw this and became quite flustered. "What does he mean by that?" But I couldn't say anything before Monokuma spoke up. "That's not what's important right now. What is very important however is this! The next person who kills and gets away with it will not only get to leave but will also get to take this sweet prize money home too! What a bargain!"

"This is sick man! No one would ever kill someone for cash!" Damian shouted angrily.

Marcel blinked a bit as he mindlessly spoke up. "Could I just have some of that money if I hurt someone just a tiny bit?"

Damian looked like he got hit with a brick to the head. "Oh frizz. I forgot not all of us have a sense of self control."

Marcel suddenly froze as he felt a tremendous force behind him and shakily turned around to see Paul's sadistic eyes glare into his soul. "Don't even think about it." Marcel gulped as he stepped further away from the cash. Damian sunk even lower. "And lack major agency."

"However this money won't be available forever! All I'll say is this money has an expiration date that will remain a mystery to you hooligans and it's not too long from now! If you want this money to go along with your freedom then there better be a murder here soon. Otherwise this lifetime opportunity will be gone forever!" Monokuma called out cheerfully before he began laughing wildly again. "AAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Suddenly the canoe was hoisted back up through the ceiling with Monokuma and the money inside and the three ropes followed suit after. We were once again left all alone with nothing but a deep feeling of despair hit the pits of our stomachs. Well at least it had for me as unsightly memories flooded my brain. My body began shaking badly like I was having a seizure but showing no indication of having one. But it still freaked out more than a few of the others as their cries and shouts to me became jumbled and messy, mixing and mashing into each other to create a vortex of cluttered questions in my head. I soon felt what I thought were hands latch themselves onto me as I was most likely carried out of the auditorium.

Everything for me was black. I wasn't able to react, to hear, to feel. Nothing was there. I was alone in the darkness. I knew this darkness too well. I thought I had made it vanish years ago but it managed to find it's way back into me. I didn't want to admit it to myself but it was too late as I was consumed by the familiar yet fiendish darkness. The darkness of my past. It was cold but stung like fire to the skin. Irritated and unquenchable. I was lost in it again. I was sinking in it fast with no way out. No way out. All alone. All alone. Just dead...

* * *

 _Whoa! Something seems amiss with Kai huh? Wonder what's got him so worked up. And what did he mean by the darkness of his past? Well I know but will you know next time? Will you know if someone dies over the new motive? Will you know anything new? Probably not but have hope for now that you will and feel the despair until then because..._

 _BIG NEWS! Due to a request I cannot refuse I must take a break from writing this story for now. Don't worry though I should be able to continue writing soon. And the reason will become clear... eventually. But until then feel the despair of waiting for an unspecified amount of time until I return! Puhuhuhu! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!_


	12. Chapter 2 Part 4: Day 8 and Day 9

I can't wake up. I was trapped in this void as I sank deeper into the jaws of the demon. It was blinding, cold, and empty that somehow only I was able to fill. Then I began drowning but at the same time I was coughing like I wasn't underwater. That's when I felt my body shoot up and my eyes register my surroundings. I soon saw everyone gathered around me whether they were close to me or observing from a distance some with worried expressions and other that didn't. We were all in the cafeteria with me sitting on one of the tabletops. I noticed Shana was glaring at me in annoyance with a cup in hand. It was empty but drips of water fell out of the brim as if it was just emptied.

'I guess that would explain why my face feels wet.' I thought as I saw more than a few relieved smiles appear on my friend's faces.

Shana was the first one I heard speak up. "About damn time! I thought I would have to stick my pickax in your head for you to snap outta it."

"But if you did that he would be dead and you'd be executed since we'd vote you as the killer." Marcel warned her which ended with Shana throwing the cup in his face making him fall flat on his back.

"Can it!" She screamed at him.

Damian walked up and placed his hand on my shoulder despite it also being damp from the water. "Hey man. We all got very worried about you in there when you froze up and became unresponsive." He handed me a towel to wipe off the water.

"Yeah what was that all about? It was like you were asleep but with yur eyes wide open like some kind of fish." Willie said.

I soon realized what they meant as the image flooded back but this time I wasn't going to see only darkness again but that didn't stop me from curling up on the table. Mikayla quickly looked to me with concern. "Kai... what was it that happened? Please tell us. That money made you freeze. Why?"

"It can't be because your feel compelled to kill for money. Your the top rated teen actor in America. Money isn't an issue or necessity for you." Paul calculated before he smirked. "Is it because if someone does die it'll be on your head since you chose the motive?"

Luca suddenly jumped to his feet and approached him. "It won't be on his head and it won't be his fault. He had no choice but to comply with Monokuma and choose the motive otherwise he could have been hurt or worse! Hell it could have been any of us that Monokuma forced to do that even you!"

I scooted forward until I could feel my feet touch the seat of the cafeteria table. "No. It's not that." Everyone looked at me when I spoke up.

"Then what?" Paul asked irritably.

I looked down as my face was shadowed in darkness. "It's because I know someone will die because of the motive."

I heard a collective gasp resonate in my ears as everyone was shocked. Melinda made a snide remark at me next. "What do you mean? How would you know someone will kill one of us for money? You're no damn psychic."

"No I'm not. I just know how money can corrupt people. You're right Paul I have lots of money but that's why I hate it too. I don't use any of it. I've always had Terry use the money I earned for things we need or want because I don't want to end up like so many other celebrities." I looked up as everyone saw the sadness in my eyes. "I have seen countless celebrities fall for stardom because they flaunted their money around and do stupid things. I've seen scandals and drug use and countless other degrading things that people have done because they let the money dictate their lives. I'm around it all the time. It sickens me to see people have more love for money and material things than for their career, their friends and family, or even themselves. That's why I know someone will die soon. Because money always affects people in the worse way possible. I've only seen hope in the one person I've had the honor of considering to being my only true friend."

"Manako Kumara, the Japanese-American YouTube and celebrity idol." Paul answered without hesitation.

"Oh that's right. Manako has had Kai in her vlogs for over two years now. From what I had watched they were really good friends." Brenda said thoughtfully.

I nodded. "Well that's because she was and still is. It wasn't a thing for us to get together for publicity or anything. It's because we liked being around each other. She's fun and so independent. She's one of the few people I have seen that hasn't allowed her mindset to be corrupted by fame and worse fortune. We've become best friends and I worry to think what's happened to her just as much as Terry. But despite her being my only true friend I want to believe I have you all as friends too but that will change when someone dies because of the million dollar motive Monokuma has put out there. I don't want to see one of my friends dies over money. I don't think I could handle it."

Suddenly I felt someone hug me from my side. I looked up to see Brenda's freckled face near mine as she smiled sweetly at me. "Kai I may not know people well enough to know their deeper motivations but I can already tell you that no one here is corrupt enough to kill for money."

"Except those two. I bet their definitely corrupt." Shana growled pointing back at Melinda and Paul. The two merely huffed at her with no quirky remark back.

Brenda shook her head. "No they wouldn't. They're trying to survive this killing game just as much as we are. Otherwise they wouldn't have made that little club of theirs. So that eliminates four of us and look whose left. People who we've come to know and trust. Friends who have shared laughs as much as tears. Do you think anyone that is left would kill for money?"

I looked at everyone one by one. True they may be hiding it but I felt like I could trust Shana, Sienna, Mikayla, Damian, Willie, Tommy, Brenda, and even Luca despite his unreasonable behavior before. I do believe none of them would kill for money. I soon looked back to Brenda and saw her giddy grin. "I knew it! You do have faith in us. Now you don't have a reason to be frowning anymore. C'mon! I wanna see that million dollar smile!" She then covered her mouth. "Sorry too soon?"

I couldn't help but feel myself chuckle at that as I smiled sweetly at Brenda. She soon smiled again in relief. "There it is. There's that smile that everyone loves!"

"Thanks Brenda. I'm glad you could make me smile even just for a while." I told her. She nodded her understanding as she stood up.

"But can you really trust everyone?" We heard someone ask as our attention was now focused on Paul. I tensed up at that question. "W-What do you mean?" I asked him confused.

"Well I happen to know plenty of potential killers right now based on my knowledge of some of you people and your... dark demons." Paul chuckled.

"No. You're wrong." We heard someone say angrily. We were all very surprised to see Sienna approach Paul with a look of absolute disgust on her face. "What was that?" Paul asked her menacingly.

"How dare you say that like you know us! I wanna believe not one of us would kill for money like Brenda and the others do! You're just trying to spoil everything for us! I bet you're the real one who would kill for money you big bully!" Sienna shouted at him holding her fists up.

"Sienna!" Mikayla gasped in shock. I guess even she has never seen Sienna like this. I bet no one ever has.

Paul's smirk soon transformed into a glare. "I may be a hacker but I use my skills to hack and use the information I gather to my advantage. Not once have I used my skills for murder. But since you're so convinced that I don't know what I'm talking about why don't I start off with why you are a candidate for committing murder?" Sienna looked at him in horror. "W-What?"

I felt a rush of anger hit me as I stood up. "Now hold on! Sienna would never kill! She has no reason to!"

"We all have a reason to. We all want out of here and I bet Sienna would love that money." Paul then opened his laptop and began typing on it. "Now let's begin with possible motives Sienna would kill for money. Well how about the fact she was never suppose to be born?"

Sienna froze up hearing that and Shana growled. "Why you little punk! How dare you say she wasn't suppose to be born! That's horrific of you to even suggest it!"

"But am I wrong? Just because it may be horrible doesn't mean it's not true." Paul replied.

"It's not true! You're just trying to hurt her! Go on Sienna! Tell that asshole how wrong he is!" Shana growled to her as she glared at Paul.

After a brief moment of silence Sienna spoke up. "But... h-he's not lying." Shana gasped. "I wasn't... suppose to be born."

I felt my heart drop. Hearing Paul say it was one thing but the fact Sienna said it with such sincerity made me want to cry. "What?" I whispered.

"Now class have a seat so I can begin the lesson." Paul spoke up like he was a college professor.

Shana clenched her fist. "Why you!" But just before she could move Melinda suddenly appeared in front of her with her rifle pointed at her face. "He said have a seat." Having no other choice Shana sat down on the cafeteria seat behind her as everyone else took a seat as well.

Paul chuckled. "Good. Now let's take a look here." He began typing again as he was most likely bringing up some file he had on Sienna. "The summarized story of Sienna's parents and their lives before and after her birth. Basically Sienna's parents were both professional figure skaters who won many competitions. However they never met until they signed up for the same one that was taking place in China, where some of Jim Donnelly's ancestors were originally from. Anyways Jim was visiting his old family's home while he came over to China to participate in this amazing competition. However once the competition was over the judges were torn between to talented competitors and decided they would do something very rarely seen in championships like this. They had a tie for first place. Jim had won first and so had Connie. Normally you'd think they would be furious sharing the trophy stand as they each held a side of the trophy but little did anyone realize it was love at first sight. Soon they returned to America and began seeing each other more and soon they married and began entering couples competitions instead of singles."

"They seemed perfect for each other since they were ideal together in the ice rink but completely different with everything else. Connie wanted nothing more than to have a family but Jim refused saying it would only interfere with their careers since by this point they were one championship away from being asked to join the next Olympic Tournament. So they kept up their training. But due to an unexpected break in protection during one of their... nightly escapades, Connie soon found out she was pregnant and due to have the child before the competition. When Jim figured it out a few months afterwards he demanded she get an abortion. However she refused and ran away when he tried to force her to go get the child aborted. And that forced them to drop out of the chapmionship and the running for a spot in the Olympics forever. Several months later the child was born and due to the betrayal Jim felt and the birth nearly killing Connie both of their careers as figure skaters was also forever ruined. All because of one poorly developed condom."

Sienna looked down at her feet teary eyes but not outright crying like I thought she would be at this point.

"Okay so her parents had an accident when they were enjoyin' one another. Big whoop! That doesn't tell us why Sienna might kill for money or why you singled her out!" Willie hollered at Paul.

"You're right it doesn't. I just wanted to make her relive the reality she's in for opening her damn mouth at me." Paul snarled.

Shana wanted to make a move but Melinda kept her pinned with that hunting rifle pointed at her. "But the reason is still there. Allow me to enlighten you." Paul continued. "Due to an unfortunate plane crash that boarded the only family Connie had ran away to, she had no choice but to return to Jim to help support the child and herself. But even though he did allow them to return, he made every day agony by beating the woman he formerly loved. And once the child was old enough he began taking his frustrations out on her instead. He told her that she ruined their lives and how she was a mistake. How she would never be loved and how she was worthless. Despite her mother trying to ensure her the father's words weren't true they still took heavy toll on her. Yet somehow the mother's words of love and encouragement sparked a little hope for her despite the timid and scared nature the father beat, spat, and abused into her. She tells her father that she loves him nonetheless, how he'll always be her father, and how she wants nothing more than to have his love for her."

Paul looked up from his computer screen with a terrible grin on his face. "Isn't that right? You want your daddy to love you no matter what."

"Stop it." Sienna whimpered.

"I bet a million dollars might help you earn daddy's respect wouldn't it?"

"Stop it!" She begged louder.

"But I also bet if you tried to kill you'd die first since you're so pathetic and weak just like your mother."

"STOP IT! STOP IT STOP IT!" She was now screaming as she covered her ears. Suddenly a shadow moved and went at Paul as a slap echoed throughout the cafeteria. Everyone looked in shock as we saw the hand return from Paul's face as Mikayla rubbed her now slightly red hand. "That's enough." She growled lowly at him.

Melinda's eyes widened. "How dare you touch him like that!"

Paul glared. "Enough! I thought I'd take pity on you all but I guess you don't want my help."

"Help? That is not help! You're bringing up painful memories of Sienna's past and if you brought up anyone else's past you'd just be hurting them! There's nothing to gain from toying with our emotions!" Mikayla yelled at him.

"You could gain a lot from knowing the people around you. It's how you survive. By knowing your enemies and their weak points you can better protect yourself when those weak points are triggered." Paul rebuttalled.

"We're not enemies. We can't be enemies here otherwise Monokuma's gonna get what he wants." I jumped in but Paul's head whipped at me. "Well right now we're trapped in Monokuma's world. A world where murder and betrayal and despair are the only things that exist. You keep blinding yourself with false realities that everyone will work together and be friends and that will be the downfall for you all. It will be the end when you all die!"

"No. You're wrong." Paul looked stunned as the person who said that was once again Sienna. "I'll prove it. You are right about a lot of things. I want daddy to love me. I want to experience the love a father and daughter are suppose to have like how Shana and her father love each other or everyone else here! I may be the weakest one here but I can get strong! No I will get strong! I show you I don't need Big Sis Kayla, I don't need protecting, and I can get out of here without killing or dying!"

Sienna then turned and bolted out of the cafeteria with no tears but a look of pure determination and willpower as we quickly lost sight of her. "Sienna wait!" Mikayla cried out running after her. However she stopped short at the entrance when Paul spoke up again. "Well that took an unexpected turn. She'll most likely try to get strong enough to escape. The only way is to kill so I'll leave everyone with this last bit of information. Turns out Sienna has a deadly allergy to soy. If any of you need a way to defend yourself from that little demon then I suggest using that to your advantage. And keep her away from Mikayla as she has syringes with medicine to counter the soy." Mikayla gasped in horror at him. He simply smiled at her. "Yes I know of the syringes Sienna gave you after you promised to watch out for her when the class trial ended. She had them with her to give to the teachers just in case they needed to inject one in her. But since there were no teachers she entrusted you with them since you made that promise."

I saw Mikayla's fist ball up as Paul and his little posse began making their way out. "Well anyways I bid you all adieu. Try to live your lives before Sienna goes ballistic on you."

Those of us who were left there looked at each other nervously before we all ran out with the same thought in mind. We need to find Sienna. We all began searching for Sienna and after looking for 15 minutes Luca had found her locked up in the fitness room. Soon we were all gathered outside with only a small window on the door that we could use to view inside. The ones looking in right now were me and Mikayla as we saw Sienna using every single equipment inside trying to find a way to help her get stronger. Mikayla sighed as she backed off as I followed.

"So how is she?" Tommy asked with concern.

Mikayla looked down. "I'm afraid it doesn't look good. She's not responding to us and she seems so determined to try and get stronger. I also happened to see she had multiple snacks and food from the vending machines piled up in there so I doubt she'll be coming out anytime soon. I'm worried she'll strain herself from all this."

"Overexerting the body can be very unhealthy. I should know." Luca sighed out.

"I agree. It's good that she wants to improve herself and be strong but everyone needs help and too much exercise ain't good for you no matter what." Willie added.

"Is there anything we can do? I feel bad for her." Damian asked rubbing his arm nervously.

Mikayla sighed. "No. If I can't reach out to her then I doubt anyone else can. Let's just leave her be. She knows she can't sleep anywhere besides her dorm and all that exercise will tire her out eventually. I think we should all just head back to our rooms and rest up for tomorrow since nighttime is almost here."

"Well okay. But I doubt most of us will get any sleep after hearing that story about Sienna." Damian sighed upset as he began walking away. Soon we all began trickling off. Before I could walk any further I was yanked back. I looked to see Mikayla had stopped me. I also saw I wasn't the only one she had kept here. Brenda, Luca, and Shana were also still standing there looking at Mikayla with just as much confusion as me.

"What is it Mikayla?" I asked her as she looked back over to where the others had walked off before she spoke. "I'm sorry for pulling you guys aside like this but I need to say this." The four of us nodded to her showing we would listen to what she said.

"All I'll say is I'm very scared right now. I'm scared that Sienna might try to do something stupid and I'm scared someone might take advantage of her when she's trying to get stronger. To make things worse now her secret of her allergy to soy is exposed thanks to the Ultimate Hacker. I fear someone will use that to their advantage or use it as self defense if Sienna does try something. And now that everyone knows I have her vaccinations they'll most likely try to do it while we're separated so..." She opened her lab coat and reached into a big inside pocket and pulled out five syringes before continuing. "I want you all to help me ensure her safety by taking one of her syringes."

"Wait you want us to take them? Why?" I asked in shock at the sudden request.

"Because I trust you all the most. I'll hold onto one but I want more eyes to help me keep a close lookout for Sienna and I only have four syringes left so I needed the four people I trust most." Mikayla explained before she walked up to Shana.

"Shana you've always been keeping the girls best interests to heart especially Sienna so I know I can trust one of these with you." She held one of the syringes out to the Ultimate Miner who didn't hesitate in taking it. "You know I'll help her whenever she needs it. No one messes with my friends."

Mikayla nodded to her before walking up to Luca. "Luca don't think I don't remember the times where you tried to help keep her spirits up when she felt down like how you did at the class trial. Besides you're kind and sweet. I trust you'll help me with keeping her safe." Luca wasn't as fast as Shana but he soon took one from her. "I hope I can be of assistance for everyone's sake."

She then approached Brenda next. "Out of everyone here we spent the most time together with Sienna and you've been a true friend. I know I can trust you when your bubbly face can help us all smile." Brenda's signature smile gleamed as she happily took the syringe. "I doubt I'll be much help compared to Luca or Shana but I'll try nonetheless."

Finally I was the last one Mikayla walked up to. "I don't think I need to explain why I trust you." That was all Mikayla said as she held out the last syringe for me to take. I reached out but hesitated. Once I didn't make a move Mikayla looked at me with worry. I quickly swallowed as I took the syringe which made her let out a breath of relief. "Thank you all. With the five of us looking out for her I know we can ensure she gets out of here alive and that we reunite her with her mom as well as get us back to our loved ones as well!" We all cheered triumphantly as we all smiled before leaving the second floor and Sienna in the fitness room alone.

We all made our way back to the dormitory hallway as we all stopped at our doors. I looked at each person who took the oath to help Mikayla and Sienna. I saw Luca's determined face, Brenda's giddy grin, Mikayla's relaxed expression, and Shana's cocky smirk. I soon made my way inside as I heard a few doors close before mine closed. I quickly made my way to bed and hopped in feeling more hope that we'd get out of here more than ever before. I don't know why. Maybe it was because some of us were finally working together to ensure at least one of us got out if not all of us. And right now Sienna is that one that deserves it the most. I somehow ended up going to sleep before Monokuma's recycled nighttime announcement played actually looking forward to tomorrow for the first time in forever.

 **Day 9**

 _ ***Ding Ding Bing Bong***_

Soon the bell that cued the morning announcement rang out which woke me up from the most peaceful sleep I had in such a long time. I eagerly hopped out of bed and rushed out with my backpack in hand to the cafeteria for a bright day. No better way than with a big breakfast.

I quickly scrounged around the kitchen to make myself food as the others trickled in. I didn't pay too much attention to who came in and out but I did notice a few people who didn't show up were Sienna, who was most likely back at the fitness room, and Paul and Melinda to name a few. No shocker those two didn't show up for breakfast but it was surprising to see Ollie and Marcel there. But they didn't interact with anyone as they ate their food before leaving. I was just finishing breakfast myself when I went to throw away my trash but didn't realize my shoelace came undone until it was too late. I stepped on my loose lace and ended up tripping over which just happened to knock Willie over as his bowl of oatmeal fell all over his shirt and drop his banana on the ground. Which then triggered another slip up as Damian literally slipped on the banana and went face first into his freshly prepared chocolate chip waffles with blueberry syrup.

I sat up and gasped at the sight. "Oh no! I'm so sorry you guys!"

Damian managed to free his face from his breakfast as it made a squish as he did so with strings of syrup connecting parts of his face with his former meal. "Naw don't worry man. But that was a nice little chain reaction you had going there." He chuckled as Willie helped both of us up.

"Well next time I would appreciate it if you didn't involve my food with yer chain reactions or me for that matter." He growled a bit irritably. I scratched the back of my head. "I did say sorry. Sorry I made you guys such a mess." I apologized again.

Willie shook his head. "This ain't nothin' partner. I've been in worse messes than this."

Damian looked a little surprised at this as he used a napkin he had to try and clean as much blueberry off his glasses as he could. "Really?"

Willie nodded as he used the spoon he had to scrap as much oatmeal off his shirt as possible. "Well I may be the Ultimate Cowboy now but I didn't start off as one. I remember one time I was helpin' Pa out in the barn with the cows. While he was milkin' them I was groomin' the cows by brushin' them out. But I felt like I would be much better helpin' out Pa by gettin' him the milk he needed to be milked. But I was young and inexperienced with that technique yet I still tried it on ole Jessie when Pa was busy with Fern. I guess I pulled too hard on one of her utters and she not only was so startled she kicked me in the gut but took a nice fresh dump of her manure on me too. I cried from the pain and from feeling like poop in both senses of the word. But Pa came runnin' up and asked me what happened. After I told him the truth I thought he'd scold me for being dumb but he commended me for tryin' to help and for being a thoughtful son. After that point I did what I could to help out more whether Ma or Pa wanted it or not. Eventually I was able to help them out and even surpass them at work at home."

Damian and I listened to his story not interrupting once as we were completely absorbed by that tale. "Didn't you get seriously injured from getting a hoof to the stomach like that?" I asked.

"Shoot yeah. After Pa was done consoling me he noticed Jessie's hoof actually had cut me. I needed sixteen stitches and I've got a scar to prove it." Willie chuckled as he rubbed his belly where the scar most likely was underneath his shirt.

Damian seemed to cringe. "That must be a pretty gross sight man."

"Why? Do you not like seein' injuries?" Willie asked. Damian shook his head. "Not really. I developed a phobia of blood and injuries after I tried to be a doctor."

I blinked at him and laughed a bit. "Wait what? You tried to become a doctor?"

Damian nodded with an embarrassed chuckle. "Well I was a kid and my mama always made it sound like being a doctor was the best thing in the world. So I tried to become a 6 year old doctor one day by helping out people in the neighborhood. Mama always watched a show called Grey's Anatomy and I thought that by just watching the show I would learn all I need. I remember one day when riding my bike home from school I saw a few of my classmates jumping off a bike ramp that belonged to one of their older brothers. But I saw one kid land on the ground wrong and ended up hitting the cement hard. I heard something break thinking it was the bike and him crying in pain as his buddies gathered around him in shock. I rushed over and went to see how I could help being the youngest doctor in history but that's when I realized it wasn't his bike that broke but his arm. In fact it was so broken I saw some of his bone sticking out and the sight made me pass out. The kid was rushed to the hospital and eventually recovered but I was scarred in a way where if I see even the slightest injury I freak out. Not so much as I pass out but it makes me lose my nerve."

I slightly snorted. "That's not the only thing that makes you lose you nerve." Damian looked confused before I darted my eyes over at a table and his looked back to see a few of the girls sitting at it. His head darted back before he barked, "Hey!"

Me and Willie couldn't help but laugh and soon enough he was laughing with us. I didn't think I would bond with these two guys with woman problems over spilled breakfast but here I was doing that. I quickly helped get them both properly cleaned off and helped them remake their breakfast with another apology. The two forgave me as they began eating and I left them to eat in peace. I made my way out wondering what to do.

That decision would be made fairly quickly as I saw Brenda fast approaching. "Hey Kai! Come on!"

She seemed a bit rushed. "What's up?" I asked her.

"Mikayla hasn't seen Sienna around and she wanted help finding her. She asked me to grab a few others to help her look so I grabbed the first two closest people and you happened to be the second person." She informed me.

"Oh I see. So who else is helping?" I asked out of curiosity. She giggled a bit which made me tilt my head. "Marcel." She answered.

My eyes widened in surprise hearing this. "Marcel? But I thought everyone associated with Paul was suppose to avoid us."

"Yeah but I talked with him and easily convinced him that he can do some things without Paul's consent. After all he not Marcel's mom." Brenda told me. I chuckled at that. "Well at least someone has made him see that he should have agency for himself. So where are they now?"

"They're up on the second floor." Brenda replied.

I looked at her a bit confused. "But shouldn't we check the first floor too?"

"No. Besides her dorm, which was left unlocked and was empty, there's no where on the first floor she would be. She's trying to improve her body to be stronger so I doubt she's in places like the rec room or library which leaves the second floor." She explained.

I shrugged. "That makes sense. Well let's hurry. It'll help Mikayla relax when she sees Sienna." We quickly ran down the hallways and up the stairs to see Mikayla and Marcel waiting at the top.

"Good to see you brought Kai!" Mikayla smiled at Brenda.

"Well he was the second person I saw so I figured this would work." Brenda responded.

Marcel tapped his chin thoughtfully. "So where should we go first?"

"Let's go check out the fitness room." I suggested since it seemed like the most logical choice.

There was no arguments made as we all made our way there. Marcel peeked inside and opened the door. He went in with us behind and what we saw shocked us. No one was there. "Guess she's not here." Marcel said.

"Obviously. It would be clear as day if someone were in here." Mikayla deadpanned at him which made him grimace at her.

"How about the gym?" Brenda offered as we walked out and made our way to the gym. But once we arrived Marcel spoke up again. "No one is here either."

"Again we can see that for ourselves." Mikayla said a bit more irritable. I think she's starting to worry.

Brenda patted her shoulder. "Don't worry. Maybe she's at the pool."

Something came to mind. "But you can't swim during the day. Monokuma's rules don't allow you to do so."

Brenda looked down. "Oh that's right. I almost forgot."

Marcel shrugged. "But it might be good to double check since we haven't seen her yet. After all she might be running laps around the pool too."

"Cool no one cares let's just go!" Mikayla said quickly shutting Marcel up.

"We can go through the locker rooms to the pool. It'll be faster than going around." Brenda said as she went into the locker room. But before she realized it she opened the door and I panicked because she was walking into the boy's locker room. "Brenda no!"

Brenda soon realized what she did and recoiled in fear. But the four of us didn't hear anything. "Um... was something suppose to happen?" Marcel asked in confusion.

"I would think that boys and girls would have to stay in their side of the locker rooms. How come nothing happened when Brenda opened the boy's locker room?" I asked as well.

Suddenly Mikayla booked it through the door past Brenda as we all looked at her in shock at how rough she pushed Brenda to the side. We didn't say anything as we rushed after her. We soon found ourselves at the pool and looked over to see Mikayla ahead of us. We saw her not moving as we approached only to see her face drained of color. I turned my head and felt my heart clench so tightly I thought it exploded. **youtube .com** **/watch?v=W4kxEAVJjSM** There floating face up and unresponsive in the pool with traces of blood around the bloated corpse was... Sienna.

* * *

 _Oh NOOOOOOOO! SIENNA NOOOOO! Did I make it too obvious again? If so DAMMIT! I'm trying to not make it obvious but if I succeeded and surprised you with her death then YAY ME! *Claps* But now the mystery begins again as another class trial will now investigate the murder of the short, petite Ultimate Figure Skater. Who would kill her and why? Was it really the money motive or something deeper? Hopefully it doesn't become too obvious. Oh almost forgot to say... I'M BACK BABY! SEE YOU NEXT TIME! PUHUHUHU~_


	13. Chapter 2: Deadly Life & Investigation

**Chapter 2: Acceptance is the Best Medicine**

 _ **Deadly Life**_

My body was cold as I blankly stared at the pool surface to see Sienna's body there. To see such a small and timid girl found dead was beyond heartbreaking. I soon realized there were screams as I looked over to see Brenda covering her screaming mouth with her hands and Marcel fallen backwards on his butt and shaking like a leaf. "HOLY SHIT MAN! IS THAT FOR REAL?"

"No..." I looked over to see Mikayla's eyes shut very tightly as her head shook in denial. "No that is not for real! THAT JUST CAN'T BE! THAT ISN'T SIENNA AND SHE'S NOT..." Before she could continue a familiar tune played.

 _ ***Bing Bong Ding Dong***_

I looked over to the nearby monitor as Monokuma appeared on it again. "Everyone please gather around in the pool area! A body has been discovered!" The monitor soon shut off as I saw the dread hit Mikayla so suddenly.

"But that can't be right. It just can't." Mikayla whimpered as tears quickly welled her eyes.

I looked away as I felt the same sorrow hit me like a car as my tears began flowing too. I had such confidence in everyone that they would avoid the temptation of the motive. I woke up today after feeling so happy only for that happiness to be immediately torn down by the sight of Sienna. "Why did I think this wouldn't happen? Paul was right. I'm only setting myself up for despair with the hope I try to build up." I thought I said that in my head but suddenly I heard Mikayla speak up.

"It's all his fault. Paul is to blame here. If he didn't expose Sienna like that then she wouldn't be dead!" Mikayla's fist shook violently at her side as she stared at Sienna with pure hatred in her eyes.

Before I could say anything we heard the door on the other end of the pool smash open as we saw countless students flow in all at once.

Tommy was ahead of everyone else as he stepped forward. He started shouting to us. "Guys! We heard that announcement! Is there really a... a..." His attention soon caught the sight of Sienna's body in the pool as his hands went from his mouth to the sides of his head. "...ah AHHHHHHHHHHH!"

I saw Shana get near the edge of the pool and fall to her knees. "No. Is that... Sienna?"

Ollie looked away her hands cupping her elbows as she sighed. "It seems so. Someone took advantage of the poor thing. Despicable."

Then I noticed Paul and Melinda step forward to view the scene in front of us. "Well looks like we have a major water log toy stuck in the pool. Shouldn't we fish it out?" Melinda asked.

Paul sighed. "I just wish this would end already. It's awfully dreary and quite honestly it's getting on my nerves."

I saw Mikayla suddenly seethe and her teeth grit. I made a move. "Mikayla don't!" I warned her but she already made a move as she charged at them. "YOU FUCKING BASTARDS!"

Before she could get to them Monokuma appeared with dagger-like claws extended. "STOP!"

Mikayla was quick to do so since Monokuma jumped out of nowhere literally mere centimeters from where Mikayla stopped herself.

"What do you think you're doing young lady? You're breaking the rules!" He shouted at her.

Mikayla blinked. "But Sienna is dead! You're damn rules don't apply right now!"

His red eye lit up. "And that's where you're wrong! Just because a body was found does not mean you get freedom to do what you want!" His claws retracted as he began waddling past her. "But I'll let you off with a warning. After all it's time for you to investigate the murder for your next class trial!"

"Another one? You mean we have to go through this again man?" Damian hollered.

"Ugh! Yes _man_! You have no choice! Seriously how many times must you review the damn rules! A body is discovered for the first time and an investigation is put under way so the spotless can try to fight back against the blackened. The class trial begins, you all argue and debate, and you decide who shall live and who shall die!" Monokuma explained in irritation.

"Oh frizz." Damian mumbled. He obviously regretted asking that.

"If we're suppose to do this investigation then how can we inspect the body if we can't reach it?" Luca asked.

"Yeah," I chimed in. "If this is gonna be fair for us we need to get to her body! But your rules are preventing us from doing so!"

"Relax drama queen! I'm sadistic not a moron. A better term would be that I'm not a Marcel." Monokuma chuckled.

Marcel blinked as he curiously tilted his head. "A Marcel? What's that supposed to mean."

"Idiot." Mikayla growled.

"Oh!" Marcel cooed before his head shot back. "Wait... HEY!"

Monokuma then jumped onto a nearby table and pulled a key out of the wall and placed it inside a panel door. We heard a click as the panel was unlocked and opened. I saw two buttons that were labeled "Fill" and "Drain". Monokuma pressed the drain button and we heard a toilet flush resonate the room. I figured that meant the pool would drain like a toilet and if that was the case then Sienna's body might swirl away into the drain pipe. But when I frantically looked over I noticed many small holes that opened at the bottom that began draining the pool like a giant strainer for cooking.

"Puhuhuhuhu! Do you guys like the sound effect I customized into the pool's controls? I thought it would add some light-hearted comedy to this depressing scene." Monokuma giggled. We just glared at him as the water and Sienna's body began slowly descending until the pool was completely empty of water but not all the blood was washed away as it stained the ground where Sienna's body now laid.

"Now that you have access to most anywhere that could prove useful for your investigation it's time to begin!" Monokuma cheered as he threw a bunch of small tablets at everyone. "And to kick things off here's the first clue! It's the Monokuma File 2.0!"

Brenda blinked. "You said we have access to most anywhere. So was that why I was able to walk into the boy's locker room without anything happening?"

"Righty-o!" Monokuma answered. "Well I'll let you little chicklets get started. After all there's not a lot of time to be looking around before the class trial begins! Enjoy your search for the truth!" With that Monokuma jumped up and disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving us there as we stared amongst one another.

Mikayla stepped forward. "I'm going to say this now! I'm only gonna allow everyone who's not part of that demon's group be able to get anywhere near Sienna. If any of you go anywhere inside that pool, I will kill you."

Paul sneered. "And what right do you have for restricting us from investigating?"

"Because she is dead because of you!" Mikayla shouted at him.

"Are you suggesting I'm the killer?" Paul asked her with a deadpanned expression.

"No but it's because of what you said yesterday that got her killed!" Mikayla growled. "And if you think I'm joking about killing you then you're mistaken since I know the human body as well as any animal."

"You dare to threaten Paul or any of us? You have some nerve!" Melinda huffed at her.

Paul just shrugged. "Fine. But if you're restricting us then I'll restrict you. Melinda will be here to watch you and if you try to leave that pool she will kill you."

Melinda smiled. "Now that's what I'm taking about."

Mikayla blinked. "What?"

"Since you're preventing my group from investigating that one area then I'll make it fair by letting you investigate that one area and nowhere else." Paul smirked.

Mikayla sighed as she turned and walked to the shallow end of the pool and stepped into it before she walked down and knelt down next to Sienna.

Paul let out a surprised hum. "Hmm. Well I didn't think she'd accept that so easily. Oh well. Come on you two. We're off to investigate suspect places." Paul ordered as Marcel and Ollie turned and began following. Melinda however stayed put knowing already that she needed to ensure Mikayla doesn't leave the pool until the investigation was over.

I growled in annoyance. It was understandable why Mikayla wouldn't want certain people near Sienna but to limit her to the pool only was unfair. But then again I bet Mikayla wouldn't want to leave Sienna's side anyway. That's most likely why she was able to accept Paul's terms since she truly cared for Sienna like a big sister but Paul was too cold-hearted to understand that kind of relationship.

"Poor Mikayla. This is terrible." Brenda sniffled. I noticed her nervously playing with the puffy bracelet she had on her right wrist. I could see most everyone was getting more nervous staring at Sienna's body.

"I think it's best we all get started. After all Monokuma is right. We don't have long until the class trial starts." I said to the others as I saw most everyone nod in agreement. Almost everyone left since the only big thing right now that needed investigating here was Sienna's body and Mikayla was already on that. Everyone walked through either the main door or the locker rooms. That is except for one person. I let out an inward groan as Luca approached me.

Once he was standing in front of me he rubbed his neck, showing signs of nervousness. "Hey Kai. Um... do you want help investigating again?"

I looked away. "If our lives weren't on the line I would probably decline since I would be asking for Mikayla's help over yours. However due to her major restrictions and the fact I probably won't get her away from Sienna anytime soon I suppose I'll have to put things aside and work together."

"So you are mad at me even now huh." Luca stated. I didn't answer him as I turned and walked to the end of the pool which I'm sure my silent response spoke louder than any reply I could have made.

 **INVESTIGATION START!**

I decided to sit down at the shallow end of the pool on the edge as I started things off like last time and activated the Monokuma File I was given and began reading it. _"The victim is Sienna Donnelly, the Ultimate Figure Skater. Her body was discovered in the pool. The cause of death is choking. The victim's body is also swollen and majorly bruised."_ I blinked at the words I read and felt disturbed. I read over the words again and found that even after reading it again I wasn't able to pin down this feeling I got.

Luca soon sat down next to me. "Something the matter?" He asked me.

I shook my head. "I don't know why but something feels off about the Monokuma File. I don't know what but it's definitely strange everytime I read it." I guess it can't be helped right now. There's so much more that needs investigating.

Truth Bullet: Monokuma File Obtained

We stood up and made our way down the slightly steep slope of the pool floor but I soon found my feet slipping out from the wet ground and fell back. Just before my head hit the ground my arm jerked up painfully as the left side of my body was all that came into contact with the floor. I looked up to see Luca had snatched onto my right arm and prevented me from falling down completely. He smiled. "The last thing we need is another class trial for you right now."

I felt my lips instinctively try to curl up into a smile but I forced my cheeks to stay put which caused my face to hurt from the muscles fighting against each other. Luca cleared his throat nervously as he helped me up. We continued our way down with Luca lightly holding onto my shoulders to help make sure I wouldn't slip.

I looked back to him. "You don't seem very concern that you might slip."

He chuckled. "No need. I got these shoes just before school started. Mikey shoes are the best for parkour. They're built to endure a lot of wear and tear and they're so slip resistant stepping on a banana peel on a frozen lake wouldn't do a thing." I was kind of surprised to hear that but we soon stopped short as we now stood in front of Sienna's body with Mikayla kneeling next to her. I soon saw her tears streaking her cheeks and falling into her lap.

"Why did this happen? Why did this happen to her? To kill such a sweet and harmless girl like this. It's unforgivable. The monster responsible for this will pay." Mikayla sniffled. I felt my heartstrings being tugged so hard it hurt. Seeing how broken Mikayla was over Sienna was absolutely horrible. Seeing Sienna's body in such a state was horrible. I felt major sympathy for her. But...

"Mikayla I hate that this happened as much as you but we really need to inspect her body. If we find anything useful then we can use it to find her killer. I could use your superior vision to help me find all the tiny details if you can." I gently placed my hand on top of her left shoulder. "Please."

Mikayla didn't respond at first. She just looked at Sienna's body, completely drained and lifeless. After a minute of utter silence Luca walked to her, knelt behind her, and hugged her close. I was just surprised as Mikayla was by the sudden contact with his chest against her back. "We really need your help. I know it hurts but you have to push forward. This is for our sake as much as Sienna. We saw how strong she wanted to be so I bet right now she'd want you to stay strong for her sake. She believed in you and so will I."

Luca remained behind her still hugging her in such a loving manner. It warmed my heart to see Luca be so generous and loving even with Sienna's poor body next to us. Soon I saw Mikayla turn to Luca and smile. "Thanks. I'll do my best." I was pretty sure I notice a blush graze along her features for just a moment when she said that. I felt something in me tingle at the sight. Not too sure why but I ignored it.

Luca nodded to her as he backed off. Mikayla stayed on the left side of her body while I knelt down to the right of her and Luca went to her head. We all stared down at her body as my eyes shifted across her slightly deformed body before taking out my e-handbook and activated the now accessible camera. I noted that she was wearing a white tank top instead of the snowflake jacket she always wore.

Mikayla began examining her body as Luca helped shift her body around. She pointed to her head and neck first. "She's majorly swelled up." She noted.

"Is that because someone used her allergy of soy against her?" Luca asked.

Mikayla moved one of her soaked pigtail off her face as she stared at her. "It... It's not easy to tell."

I blinked at her. "What do you mean?"

"Well her body is so wrinkled and wet, her skin is very tender. I bet she's been in the pool for a long while now. But that's not the only reason I'm not entirely sure." Mikayla told us as she lifted her head carefully as she pointed to her neck. Me and Luca moved in for a closer look and we saw bruises on her neck. But taking a closer look at it I saw two lined bruises across her Adam's apple and a few more on the sides and back of her neck. "Are those finger impressions?"

Mikayla nodded. "This indicates she was choked just like the Monokuma File said. There are more bruises on her face and arms too so she might be swollen from being beaten up badly. I don't know if it was the main cause of death or not. If her body hadn't been in the pool this autopsy might be able to tell us more."

I hummed. "Maybe that was the idea."

Luca looked to me. "What do you mean?"

"I mean what if the killer wanted to ensure we couldn't find important clues on Sienna's body. After all we learned a lot from Jayden's cut during the first class trial so maybe someone learned from it and tampered with Sienna's body by leaving it in the pool for hours." I explained.

Truth Bullet: Status of Sienna's Body Obtained

Before I got up I noticed a small red bump on the right side her neck right above her collarbone. "Hey Mikayla? What's that nasty bump on her neck?" I pointed to it.

She leaned down and closely examined it. After a minute she sat up and shook her head. "I think it's a mosquito bite or something. I doubt it's anything we can use. But there is one thing I noticed when searching Sienna."

"What's that?" I asked her.

"When I checked her pockets all I found was her student handbook. I didn't find her dorm key on her anywhere." Mikayla informed us.

"That can't be coincidence. Even though she wanted to be stronger, I doubt she would have risked leaving her key somewhere." I said thoughtfully.

Truth Bullet: Sienna's Missing Key Obtained

"I think that's really all we'll be able to get from her body. Is there anything that you noticed this morning?" Luca asked her.

She shook her head. "No. Nothing and no one out of the ordinary. It's just when I couldn't find Sienna I ran into Brenda and she offered to go get people to help us find Sienna."

Luca nodded to her before looking to me. "In that case we should move on." Luca told me. I nodded in agreement as we stood up. Luca looked back down to Mikayla. "Are you gonna be alright here by yourself?"

"I think so. I'll keep checking her body just in case I can find anything else. Besides it's not like I'm completely alone." Mikayla sighed as she looked behind her on the high edge of the pool. We saw Melinda sitting there with her knife out. She was sharpening it all while not keeping her eyes off us. She waved with a sadistic smile that made me want to punch her square in the mouth.

"I'll be fine. Just keep investigating. I'll need your help to crack this case." Mikayla told us, her words shooing us away.

Luca and I began walking back up the steep slope with Luca doing most of the heavy lifting on my part. We soon stepped out of the pool but I was stopped in my tracks when something caught my eye. I bent and examined the railing next to the stairs of the pool's shallow end.

"What is it Kai?" Luca asked me.

I pointed near the top of the rail where the curve is connecting the piece that is grounded into the floor and the one that is used to hold onto when entering or exiting the pool. There was a strange marking on it. It was brown and it looked like it was lightly rusting. When I touched it, the mark felt a bit grimy.

"That's strange. I thought everything in this school was brand new." I felt like something was off and I couldn't help but feel like this was too important to ignore.

Truth Bullet: Marked Pool Railing Obtained

When I looked away I realized Luca had walked away without me noticing. He was standing in front of the pool rules. I made my way to him.

"You know I had no reason reading the rules for this area before but that third rule is definitely stupid." Luca chimes to me. I looked to the rules and read them despite already knowing what they were.

"I don't think these rules are listed in the school regulations and they might be useful for later on. Maybe." I shrugged as I held up my handbook and snapped a picture.

Truth Bullet: Pool Rules Obtained

"So what now? Where do we search next?" Luca asked. "I doubt there's really anything else around here."

"Well we'll need to look around any place that could have potential clues. The main places I can think of are the fitness room, locker rooms, school store, and Sienna's dorm. We'll also need to try and gather information from the others. See if anyone saw Sienna or knows something that could be useful. We might need to ask Monokuma if it's something no one would know."

"Best be careful." We heard Melinda call out to us. We turned around to see her with a racing grin plastered on her face. "The hunt for the blackened is afoot. Or are they hunting us I wonder?"

I glared at her and looked to Luca. He nodded his understanding as we walked away not giving her the time of day or response to her rantings. We decided to check out both locker rooms first. I figured it would be a good idea to investigate here since any place you normally wouldn't have access to is unlocked for a fair class trial. It's how Damian and Shana found Jayden and Helen in Helen's locked room so why should this be any different?

"Should we split up and search each locker room?" Luca asked.

"Yeah we should. I'll take the girl's locker room and you take the boy's." I told him as I began walking to the girl's only to be stopped by Luca grabbing my arm.

"You're not trying to peep on the ladies now are you?" Luca asked very sarcastically with a wry grin on his face.

I glared at him. "We both know none of the girls are gonna be showering right now. Besides we're both guys so it's gonna be weird for one of us anyway. I'll just go in since I know how to get outside my comfort zone when necessary. After all you are talking to the Ultimate Actor here."

Luca laughed. "Too true. Alright I'll see you on the other side at the gym." Luca let me go and went into the boy's locker room as I approached and entered the girl's.

It wasn't much different from the boys. Just a more pinkish hue to the tiled walls than the boys blue hue. The locker rooms weren't too big. There were two sets of eight green lockers on opposite sides of small benches, an open shower behind one set of lockers, and many bathroom stalls behind the other.

I searched each locker but found nothing. I walked over to the stalls and checked each one and each toilet to see if I could find a sign that they may have flushed something important but found nothing as well. So I then made my way to the showers and looked around the open space. But I wasn't seeing anything. I sighed in annoyance as I turned but suddenly slipped on the tile floor. Luckily my arms compressed my fall enough that my face didn't collide with the ground but my chest arms and my knees were now very sore from the collision. I shook my head a little to compose myself only to feel my chest was wet. I noticed there was a small streak of water coming from under me and soon I heard a drip.

I turned my head back to the shower head directly behind me as I saw the slowest drips leaking from the shower head. I followed the water trail it was leaving with my eyes underneath me then looked forward as I crawled above it to one of the drains in the shower area and I happened to notice on the opposite side of the drain was a small dried-up pink blotch. There was no mistaking what I was seeing in front of me. It was a drop of blood. I quickly stood up and snapped a picture of the drain and the shower head.

Truth Bullets: Leaking Shower Head and Blood Near Drain Obtained

I looked at the shower with curiosity. I wondered if it was leaking because it was slightly broken or some other reason. I approached it and noticed the handle didn't seem to be turned all the way. So I grabbed it and twisted it to the right. I felt the handle tighten up a tiny bit as the leak soon stopped. "Just as I thought. It was just barely left on." I said to myself.

Seeing nothing left for me here I went to the opposite door to the gym and exited through to see Luca already there and waiting for me. He quickly approached as the door closed behind me. "Dude what took you so long?" He asked pausing as he snickered seeing my wet chest. "Decided to shower while you were in there?"

"No. I slipped on the water in there." I answered.

Luca shook his head. "Dude you need better shoes. Those things are like roller blades more than shoes with how much you slip on water."

"Luca once you see what I found I think you'll understand why that was a good thing." I told him as I opened up my camera to show him the photo of the blood drip.

"Is that Sienna's blood?" He asked me but I merely shrugged.

"I don't know. It's the only thing I can think of. What about you did you find anything?" I asked in return but he shook his head.

We had really learned nothing. I may have found something useful but right now there was nothing major that could help us narrow down the suspects. We decided to check out the fitness room next since Sienna that was the last place we saw her last night.

When Luca opened the door and we stepped in the place looked clean. I recall looking in last night when Sienna locked herself in here she was using all the big equipment as well as the smaller ones such as a few weights she could lift. There were also snacks from the vending machines both wrapped and slightly unwrapped with bites from the food scattered all around the equipment. But now the place looked spotless and everything was in its rightful place.

"Looks like Sienna tidied up the place before she left to go to sleep." Luca noted.

"Maybe. Or maybe not." I replied which gave me a confused look from Luca. "Never mind. Let's just look around right now."

He shrugged as we split up and began searching. Not too long into the search we heard the door open. I looked over my shoulder since the door was behind me while I was searching to see Damian, Tommy, and Shana all enter. They nodded to us before they silently split up and began searching themselves. I interpreted that as they acknowledged us being here and they would help out. I saw Damian approach me as he began searching around the snack and energy drink vending machines and garbage can while I searched the equipment nearby.

Damian spoke up. "Hey man. Can I ask you something?"

I looked at him befuddled. "Uh sure. What is it?"

"I just got this funny feeling that the murder happened this morning maybe during breakfast around the time you ran into me and Willie and we talked for a bit before eating breakfast. Don't you think?" He asked me.

"Well that's kinda difficult to say right now. But I would like to know if there was anything suspicious last night or this morning that you noticed." I requested him, hoping he might have something valuable to note.

Damian looked thoughtful as he began digging through the garbage can of empty energy cans and wrappers. "Well no not really. I went straight to bed after the whole blowout with Sienna and Paul. Nothing really out of the ordinary happened this morning. I just got up a bit late and went to go get breakfast. That was about the time I met up with Willie. He looked a tad sweaty and I asked him why. He told me he was working out at 6 this morning and finished just before we met up in the kitchen. That was we ran into you. Or to be more precise you literally ran into us."

I chuckled at that before nodding to him. "Thanks Damian." I felt something bugging me as I looked over and saw Luca's head jerk away back in front of him. I looked away with a weird feeling. 'Was he eavesdropping on us?' I wondered.

Truth Bullet: Damian's Account Obtained

I shook my head as Damian sighed. "Dang man. I thought for sure I'd find something in here. Nothing but some wrappers, bottles, and some weird shards."

I looked at Damian in confusion before I heard a pained scream. My heart leapt as I whipped my head around to see Tommy clutching his left hand, his thumb pressed against his palm. Shana was by his side immediately as everyone else rushed over as well.

"Tommy! Are you okay?" Shana asked in worry.

As I got closer I noticed there was a streak of blood running down his arm. "He's bleeding!"

"I'll run and get bandages from the nurse's office!" Luca volunteered as he rushed out with such speed I didn't register how fast he ran out.

Tommy sighed. "Well that's just my luck to get cut by something."

"What cut you man?" Damian asked.

Tommy simply shrugged. Looks like he didn't know either. But he was kneeling in front of another garbage can and Shana immediately rushed in and began searching.

I was shocked she'd dive in so fast and furious. "Shana! Be careful or you'll cut yourself too!" I warned her.

She seemed to ignore me as she continued on before she stopped and lifted her hands up before pushing a lot of garbage to the sides with both hands as she lowered her head. "What is that?"

The rest of us peered in and noticed multiple broken, plastic bits scattered amongst the garbage. One of which had a drop of blood on it. Definitely from Tommy cutting himself on it.

"What's up with the plastic pieces?" I asked curiously.

I noticed Shana looked at me with an annoyed face. "I doubt any of us know moron."

Damian hummed. Tommy looked over at him. "What is it Damian?"

Damian didn't respond. Instead he ran over and grabbed the garbage can he was searching just a second ago. He quickly pulled out some garbage before speaking. "I thought so."

He then set his can down next to the one Tommy looked through and pointed. "Look."

We obeyed his small demand and peeked inside to see more plastic shrapnel shards. I grabbed a piece from each garbage and compared them. They were exactly the same and I noticed there was some kind of inked wording that looked to be scratched off the surface.

"Looks like someone tried to destroy and hide evidence." I stated.

"Really?" I heard a voice enter the room. It was Luca rushing in with a med kit under his right arm. He swiftly set the kit down and opened it up. He grabbed some Neosporin, a band aid, and a roll of bandages. He took Tommy's hand and began treating his wound.

Luca occasionally glanced at me, informing me he was still listening despite doing something very important.

I began explaining. "Yeah. These shards are the same material and color so I think all of these pieces make something when put together. Also if it was something broken accidentally then someone wouldn't have taken the time to put it in multiple trash bins."

"If that's the case then maybe there are more pieces that were disposed of and that might be why we can't figure out what this could be." Damian added.

"That's probably true." I hummed thoughtfully.

Truth Bullet: Plastic Shards Obtained

Soon enough Luca had bandaged up Tommy's hand and the Ultimate Paleontologist smiled at Luca.

"Thanks man," said Tommy as he rubbed his hand.

Luca silently nodded as he stood up with the first aid kit under his arm.

We double checked everything in the fitness room but no one found any more clues so we went our separate ways again.

Before we could go very far Luca stopped me. "Hey Kai. Remember when you said this place was suppose to be new?"

I looked at him confused. "Yeah. Why?" I might have sounded suspicious but I couldn't help it. His sudden quiet tone threw me off.

"Well when I went to the Nurse's Office, I noticed this first aid kit was used already." He then held out the reasonably sized kit for me to see as he pointed things out through the see through lid. "That band aid box had tears in it, the Neosporin was squished as if used, and one of the bandage rolls is a bit smaller than the others. Also the bandage roll that I noticed was used is skin colored. I saw this before I patched up Tommy."

"That is strange. I didn't think someone else was hurt." I mumbled quietly.

I quickly pulled out my handbook and snapped a shot of the kit. 'I should definitely remember this.' I thought.

Truth Bullet: Used First Aid Kit Obtained

Luca and I soon continued walking and soon ended up at the school store on the first floor. We saw Willie was there alone investigating. He saw us enter when he turned around. "Howdy partners. Came to help me investigate the mystery lurkin' here?" He asked us.

"There's a mystery here?" Luca questioned Willie with a raised eyebrow.

"You bet yur two-tappin' fancy shoes there is! Just take a good looky here and you'll see what I'm talkin' bout." Willie motioned to the glass display case.

Luca and I shrugged at each other before we stepped forward and began searching through the glass case. After a moment I could tell something was off and I thought I was going crazy before Luca spoke up.

"Did someone move things around? Something feels missing." Luca inquired.

After a moment I was able to spot the reason behind it. "Yeah there is stuff missing! Look. On one of the upper shelves here were the knives and down near the bottom was the crossbow used in the first class trial. But now there's just a bunch of leather straps, pocketknives, and lighters in their places."

"Exactly! I also happened to notice this here vendin' machine use to hold granola bars, army soldier figurines, and even tasers. But now it has big cupcakes, a selection of girly bracelets, and flash grenades. Which makes me come to a conclusion. I deduce that Monokuma and the killer moved everything around in here to throw us off!" Willie shouted triumphantly.

"What was that?" A growl resonated behind Willie as he jumped away from an angry Monokuma which we all were surprised to see standing there out of nowhere.

"Seriously! How do you keep poppin' outta the blue like that?" Willie asked him.

Monokuma seemed to ignore his question as he glared at the cowboy. "How dare you suggest I played a part in this murder! You should know that I am not allowed to tamper with any evidence! The rules state so! Besides you're theory about everything getting mixed up is wrong anyway."

"Stop lyin'!" The cowboy shouted at him.

Monokuma's red eye lit up as his anger seemed to flair. "Bears do not lie! Humans lie!"

"Then explain where the knives and crossbow used in the murders of Helen and Jayden are." Willie demanded him.

Monokuma huffed. "Well first of all no one cares about the first two victims! This class trial is for Sienna. Not them! Second of all I do not appreciate that tone of yours young man! And third of all!" Monokuma suddenly paused before he tilted his head with a paw to his chin. "Where was I going with this?"

"Gah? Seriuosly?" Willie gawked at him.

Monokuma then straightened up. "Oh that's right! And third of all the school store won't have anything you've seen before when its inventory is updated!"

Willie blinked. "U-Updated?"

"That's right. After a class trial ends I restock the school store with new gizmos and gadgets for all the students to roam through! If you guys had access to the same items after every class trial then things would get boring and unoriginal seeing everyone die to a crossbow or knife. So to keep things interesting and fresh I change every little detail in the school store!" Monokuma explained.

"But if that's the case then why was Tommy able to get granola bars from the school store before when they should have been gone when the first class trial ended?" I asked after thinking about that since I knew those granola bars were definitely in the vending machine before Helen and Jayden were murdered.

Monokuma suddenly drooped down, his hands behind his back and his foot drawing little circles on the ground. "That's only because I got a bit lazy. That first class trial was just so exhilarating that I kinda forgot to do that until around the time the motive was unveiled."

Truth Bullet: Updated School Store Obtained

"You really are the worst." Luca muttered.

"Why thank you! I pride in myself for being so unpopular! Well I better get going! I wonder how long the investigation will last for?" Monokuma looked at me when he said that question out loud. I bet he was trying to hint that I need to hurry before the investigation phase ends.

When I saw him turn and begin walking away, I quickly stepped forward. "Wait Monokuma! I need you to do something for me!"

Monokuma turned around. "Oh really? What does my lovely assistant need?"

I ignored his nickname he gave me as I pressed on. "I would like to investigate Sienna's dorm. Can you please make sure it's unlocked when we head over there?"

"And why would I do that?" Monokuma asked.

"Because if this is to be a fair class trial then we need to investigate everywhere that can hold potential clues and from what we've found out I'm willing to bet that there's something major in her room. Besides you said you'd unlock all the rooms to make things fair. You had no problem with doing so with Helen's room so Sienna's shouldn't be a problem. And don't try to use the excuse that a body is too important that other evidence doesn't matter as much. After all a body is just as much of a clue as any weapon or other possible evidence." I told him smiling.

"Okay! Sheesh I get it. No need for the dumb monologue. I'll unlock the door right now so get to it before I get bored!" Monokuma growled before he hopped into the hall and vanished around the corner.

Luca smiled. "Great job Kai!"

I shrugged. "What can I say. Monologuing is one of my specialties."

"Well you two best hurry up and git going to Sienna's room. I'm gonna keep lookin' 'round here for any clues we may have overlooked." Willie told us.

"Right. Good luck Willie." Luca waved to him as he and I made a dash through the school to get to the dormitory hall next.

After a few minutes we quickly reached it and ran a little ways into the hall before stopping in front of Sienna's room. I slowly reached forward and took hold of the doorknob before turning it and pushing the door open. What I saw captivated me.

Sienna's room looked like a winter wonderland and I wasn't exaggerating in the slightest! The carpet was designed to look like a sheet of sparkling ice with the bed covered in a blanket of snow and the walls were painted with white snowflakes on a blue sky background. I saw Sienna's ice skates hanging off a hook on the back of the door. I saw her dresser and baggage and also saw a small framed picture. I slowly approached the dresser and picked up the picture.

It had a slightly younger looking Sienna smiling happily in a beautiful blue glittery ballerina like dress with glittery white eye shadow and other makeup I could identify on her face. She was also wearing a gold medal that I recognized was from the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. I only know this because Manako showed me who won the gold in one of the events but I wasn't paying much attention and just caught a brief glimpse of the photo. There was an equally beautiful yet older woman hugging Sienna from over the ice rink barrier as Sienna was obviously still standing on the ice. That had to be Sienna's mom, Connie Donnelly, since they shared so many traits like their eye color and skin complexion. Yet they didn't seem to have everything in common. Sienna's hair was black but her mom had blonde hair and Sienna's eyes were a tad bit squinted more than her mom's. I could only assume she got those traits from her abusive father. But what threw me off was seeing some random kid about our age standing next to Sienna's mom. He was much taller than Sienna with medium, frizzy brown hair, brown eyes, light skin, and wore a red jersey with an emblem of a cartoonish sparrow wielding a hockey stick like a sword. I didn't know sports so the only thing I could gather was that he was a hockey player. The only other thing I could assume was he must have been a friend of Sienna's before she left Michigan to join the academy since Sienna was an only child. But that alone surprised me since she never mentioned any friends she had besides her mom.

Soon the realization that these two that obviously care about her would eventually learn that one of her classmates murdered her in cold blood sunk in as a tear pricked at the corner of my eye. I wiped it as I looked over to see Sienna's snowflake jacket lying on top of the bed. I set the picture down and walked over as I lightly dragged my hand over the jacket feeling each glittered snowflake design as my fingers loomed over it.

"Kai? Kai!" I heard Luca shout out at me, dragging me out of the phase I was in as my stare darted over to him. "Dude we don't have too long. We need to see if there's any clues here."

"Oh right." I nodded as I looked down at the jacket and after another moment of staring blankly at it I felt myself nod firmly as I took my backpack off and placed it on the bed, unzipping it open. I saw the three mementos I had gathered so far from our deceased friends and now I was adding the fourth one to it. I firmly gripped her jacket and went to stuff it before I realized something. There was something stiff inside Sienna's jacket.

"Kai dude! Don't worry. We can grab something from Sienna to remember her by later. Stop staring at her jacket and help me search the place." Luca said sounding more irritated.

"Luca... I think I did find something." I told him.

He looked at me in surprise as he rushed to my side. "Really? What?"

I quickly laid the jacket back down but smoothed out as I reached in since it was a pull over jacket and didn't have a zipper. Soon I felt something that was much rougher than the soft material her jacket was made of. I took hold of it and pulled my hand out as a brown leather strap was pulled out with it.

I stared in utter disbelief at what was in my hand. Again what first came to mind was what I heard Luca first state. "That looks like the same leather straps we found in the school store. But this one looks a bit worn out doesn't it?"

Upon closer examination I saw that Luca was right. The leather straps we saw in the school store looked brand new and refurbished. Yet this one was slightly frayed on the sides and rougher looking than the smooth texture the others had.

I then decided to do a little experiment on the strap as I held it out to Luca. "Rub this roughly on my arm."

He looked shocked at my request. "What? Why? Are you asking me to hurt you?"

"Please just do it. I need to see if this is was I think it is." I pleaded him.

Luca sighed. "Alright but if start to hurt at all you need to tell me."

I silently nodded as he took the strap and wrapped it around my wrist before he began pulling on each end making the leather dig and rub into my skin. I won't lie it hurt. I don't think Luca realized how much pressure he was putting on it. I tried to suppress the pain but one particular tug sent a big jolt that made me instinctively jump with a moan as I bit my lip.

He noticed this and immediately stopped removing the strap off me. "Kai, I told you to tell me if I started hurting you."

"Sorry but this was too important." I said to him as he quickly grabbed my slightly tender hand.

"But look what I did." He complained as I looked down. I noticed that my wrist had taken on a slight brown hue and I could feel that this would definitely bruise up sometime soon.

"Just as I thought." I whispered.

"What?" Luca asked completely lost.

I didn't respond however. I not only immediately took a picture of the leather strap but Sienna's jacket too. The fact that it was hidden in it seemed much too important to overlook.

Truth Bullets: Frayed Leather Strap and Snowflake Jacket Obtained

"This is big! I think this may tie a lot of loose ends together." I said confidently to Luca. "Let's keep searching!"

Luca only nodded as we continued digging around Sienna's room. I was going through her dresser trying to avoid any undergarments I came across until I heard Luca call me over. I saw him kneeling next to a small garbage can near the door.

I rushed over and soon saw him pick up a small towel that had dried blood on it! "I think this is important too. Don't you think so?"

I nodded. "Most definitely." I quickly snapped the picture.

Truth Bullet: Bloody Hand Towel Obtained

"We'll try to think of how this ties in with Sienna and her death later. We need to keep searching." I said but Luca caught my hand.

"Not really. I had already searched everywhere else in here while you were daydreaming over there. Besides I think there is one last place we should look into before we run out of time." Luca told me.

I looked at him with confusion written plainly on my face. "Where else would we need to look?"

"The..." That was all Luca was able to say before that stupid tune played.

 _ ***Bing Bong Ding Dong***_

We looked over at the monitor with dread as Monokuma was seen. "So after a moment to reflect on things I decided that as of right now you've run out of time! It's time to begin the class trial! Report to the library immediately unless you wish to be marked absent forever. Puhuhu! See you soon!" The monitor quickly shut off as we grimaced.

'Did he purposefully do that just to spite us?' I wondered.

"Never mind. Looks like that was bad timing on our part. Sorry Kai." Luca apologized.

I sighed. "No it's my fault. If I didn't get distracted then maybe we would have found these clues faster and we could have search what you wanted to."

Luca gave a half-hearted smile. "It's fine. I can see why you'd get sidetracked easily right now. I probably would have done the same if I was standing where you were. Well anyway we best get going otherwise things won't be good if we show up too late."

"Right. Let's hurry." I agreed as we quickly left the room. As I ran out I had left the leather strap since I already had a picture of it and I took Sienna's jacket with me and placed it in my backpack as we rushed to the library. Sure I had a picture of her jacket but I needed it to bring back to her mom. Luca said I could always go back for something but with Monokuma I somehow doubted that possibility so I took it now before it was too late. Besides out of everything she had this was the best choice. I bet the photo had a few more copies so there was no point in taking that and the ice skates would've been too big to fit in the backpack. That left her jacket which was not only small due to her small stature but it looked to original to be factory made. I bet anything it was made for Sienna by her mom so leaving it behind would be the wrong choice.

Soon enough Luca and I made it into the library. We noticed most everyone had already arrived but not everyone was present yet.

"There's Kai and Luca!" Brenda waved to us.

"Yeah but we're still missing a few others." Tommy noted.

Shana sighed. "The only ones left are Melinda and Mikayla. Where the hell are they anyway?"

"Let's not forget that Miss Ultimate Veterinarian restricted me from entering the pool so I restricted her from exiting and Melinda made sure of that." Paul reminded us.

"But if she can't leave the pool won't she miss the trial and Melinda will too if she stays there watching her." Marcel wondered.

"Don't be such a Marcel, Marcel! I obviously meant that for the investigation phase only!" Paul sneered at the surfer.

Marcel drooped. "Are you using my name as an insult too? That's a low blow man."

Soon enough the door opened as Melinda pushed Mikayla through the door. They made their way to the rest of the group.

"About damn time! We were waiting on you." Paul barked.

Melinda growled lightly. "We would've been here sooner but I had to pry her off the body of that halfpint bitch. Seriously even I don't weep and get clingy over a kill like that."

Tommy shot daggers at her with his eyes. "That's because you don't understand human emotions and you have a heart made of brimstone."

Melinda looked to him and gave a half chuckle. "Cute. You're glaring daggers at someone who could nail you right in the eye with one."

"Don't even think about it you fucking cunt!" Shana leered at her.

"Enough! We're all here and we all know where we need to go. Kai, open the door to the elevator." Paul commanded me.

"Why are you telling me what to do?" I asked him. "I'm not your lackey."

"No but don't forget Monokuma gave you the responsibility to open the hidden door for every class trial or until you get picked off." Paul responded.

My eyes rolled. "I remember that. I just don't need you to tell me what to do."

"Then let's get going if you don't need the reminder." Paul motioned toward the door with his free hand.

I grumbled at him as I made my way past everyone and approached the "Secret Passageways for Dummies" book and pulled it back which quickly fired back into place. The bookcase made a click sound from unlocking as it slowly descended into the ground with dust being shaken off as it plunged into the floor, eventually revealing the elevator behind it. Soon everyone began walking past me and piled onto the elevator.

I saw the last person approaching was Mikayla and I knew I had to stop her before we got on. When I grabbed her hand she looked at me with smeared mascara underneath her drenched eyes. She must have refused to leave Sienna's body but was forced to leave her behind. "I'm sorry about all of this. I wish I could have been of better help. Maybe I could have prevented this from happening."

Mikayla shook her head as she placed her hand on top of mine. "No. There's only so much anyone can do. Even a celebrity like you can only have so much influence on things. The only thing we can truly do right now is to help Sienna's spirit find peace and bring her troubled soul to rest."

I nodded with a small smile. "I agree. Which is why I know you'll help us find the culprit. So real quick, did you discover anything new with Sienna's body that can help?"

Mikayla's sympathetic smile suddenly vanished as she removed her hands from mine and cast her gaze away. "Unfortunately no. I found no hints hidden on her body. We only have what was clear as day. Nothing more." Mikayla then turned and continued to proceed to the elevator. I sighed hearing that defeated tone come back so quickly as I followed her and saw the door close behind me as the elevator soon jumped before beginning its eerie descent into the earth.

The same tense feeling hit me like a tidal wave as I could feel such strong emotions sweep across the space the elevator provided. Sorrow, anger, hatred, suspicion, fear, and of course despair. Add that to the slowly falling elevator and it just made the situation feel even more tense. But not all the faces I saw had those things. I saw hope and confidence in a few lucky individuals with those being Willie, Brenda, Luca, and Tommy. Seeing them made me feel somewhat better as the ride down seemed to go by faster. Soon enough we felt another jump from the elevator as it came to a halt. The doors opened to reveal the trial grounds to us.

Nothing looked like it changed except a few more seats had framed, grayed, crossed-out pictures. I saw the ones from the last trial which were Helen's and Jayden's and two new ones now seen. One was in Evelyn's seat but instead of her grayed-out picture having a red X over her face it was a spiral; Most likely to reference her talent as the Ultimate Hypnotist as well as a reminder that she died due to a hypnotic suggestion. The other photo was no surprise as Sienna also had a unique photo where her red X was patterned to look like a snowflake but the lines that made up the X were more defined so it was very noticeable despite most if it being designed with a snowflake pattern.

Suddenly Monokuma appeared on his throne-like seat. "Glad to see you all made it just in time! Now then please stand at your designated seating and we can get this super high-strung, exciting class trial underway! Be sure to dock your student handbooks into your podium to sign in."

Everyone began making their way to the seats they were at before. In case you forgot here's a quick recap. Going clockwise from Monokuma's left was Jayden, Ollie, Luca, Evelyn, Paul, Mikayla, Damian, Sienna, myself, Brenda, Willie, Melinda, Marcel, Helen, Tommy, and Shana who was the last person on Monokuma's right.

I didn't notice it right away but after seeing how short Sienna's picture was I realized that all of the pictures of our deceased friends were different heights with Evelyn's and Helen's being around my height and Jayden's towering over us all just like he did. I bet Monokuma made sure they photos where the same height as them to add to the fact that they truly aren't standing next to us. As I stared at Sienna's seat to my right, my mind flashbacked to the moment when I first saw her body.

Sienna Donnelly, the Ultimate Figure Skater; she was too timid and troubled to talk to anyone. But I soon learned that was solely because of her vengeful father and the aggression he took out on such a sweet and innocent girl. The fact such a talented and small girl was brutally murdered is one thing but there's another fact that is very hard to believe. The fact that someone here killed her. One of us killed her and we need to discover who who do this to Sienna. Was it truly the money or some deeper motive? Why was it her? I have to learn the answers to these questions if I can even attempt to ensure our lives will be saved. Because if I don't then everyone will die and Sienna's killer will not only get away with her death but the death of us all by sacrificing us. I can't let that stand.

The stage is set for the second act as the lights begin to turn on and shine upon us, dowsing us all in our own spotlight; showcasing us all as potential friends and as potential enemies who will find the time to what needs to be done in this deathly game, in this deathly life. In this deathly truth and this deathly lie. This deathly deception; all portrayed in this deathly class trial!

* * *

 _Here we go again! The second class trial will be underway! Most of the clues have been gathered but not everyone was satisfied with how their investigations went. Will they make up for it or will it get them killed in the end? Who is your most likely candidate for committing the murder? Why do you think they would do it? I love hearing people's thoughts on these things so please leave a review on your answers and overall thoughts of my fanfiction so far! It took me so long to figure this chapter out and thinking up of truth bullets and tying them into the class trial has definitely been the most challenging portion of writing this story. But thanks to my buddies giving me some helpful tips and advice I was able to overcome it this time! But until next time I hope you despair for the next chapter to release soon. Who knows how long it'll be. See you soon. Maybe. Puhuhuhuhu~_


	14. Chapter 2: Class Trial Part 1

**Class Trial In Session**

 **All Rise!**

"Now then allow me to start this off with a quick explanation of the class trial!" Monokuma started. "During this time you will present your evidence and argue over who you believe the killer is and vote for whodunit! If the majority vote is correct then only the blackened will be punished. However if the majority is incorrect then I will punish everyone besides the blackened and they will get to graduate and leave to the outside world scot free." Monokuma explained.

"But that won't happen!" Shana shouted. "We're gonna find Sienna's killer and make them pay for what they did!"

"And how do you intend to find them? Are you gonna threaten everyone until they confess?" Melinda yawned at her.

Shana's eyes glared at her. "If that's what it takes!"

Monokuma suddenly giggled. "I love seeing you guys argue but unfortunately I won't allow any physical fighting to take place. You must fight each other with your words."

"If that's the case then can we discuss something that will be relevant to the case." Ollie spoke up.

"What is it?" Paul asked her.

"Well there was something I was very confused about. Has everyone read their Monokuma File?" Ollie asked us.

"I did." Brenda nodded.

Damian chimed in next. "Of course."

Marcel was next. "I... didn't know how to turn mine on."

Willie looked stunned. "What? Really?"

Paul sighed. "Just ignore him. So Ollie why bring this up?"

"Well I couldn't help but feel like something was off. Or more accurately that something is missing." Ollie stated.

'Something is missing from the Monokuma File. I think I know what that is.' I thought before looking over to her.

"You're referring to the time of death correct?" I asked.

"Yes. As many of you should recall when it came to Helen's and Jayden's deaths they had a time of death or at least a very close estimate but why that information not found anywhere this time?" Ollie questioned.

Tommy hummed thoughtfully. "I think Monokuma forgot to add that."

Monokuma glared at him and threw his arms up. "I didn't forget any information that needed to be added to the file. I gave you all what I could. Or at least what I wanted to. Besides if you really think about it you can figure it out."

"Then let's talk about that. When was the time when Sienna was murdered? If I were to guess my assumption would be last night because..." I began speaking before I heard someone stop me.

"You seem eager to begin this conversation." Melinda spoke up smiling with her eyes closed. "Are you by chance trying to take the lead like in the first class trial so you can lead us to a false conclusion?"

"W-What?" I was a bit flabbergasted by that.

"She's saying that you might be the killer." Paul deadpanned.

"Kai is the killer?" Brenda asked in shock.

"No way! Kai is not underhanded like you are!" Luca shouted.

"Quiet children. Let the adults speak." Paul taunted the others.

"We're all the same age! Don't talk like your above us!" Mikayla growled.

Melinda chuckled. "Well then let's get debating shall we."

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Loaded Truth Bullets: Sienna's Missing Key, Pool Rules, and Damian's Account

"I bet you killed Sienna, Kai! You're far **too eager to start things off**." Melinda chuckled.

"Where's your proof that Kai is the killer? Are you accusing him because he was the first one to speak up his mind?" Luca questioned her.

"But I was the one who started things up." Ollie reminded us.

"Then **you're both suspicious**!" Shana hollered.

Melinda chuckled lightly. "No. I just mean that there could be plenty of time's he could have killed her. **Like this morning** for example."

Truth Bullet Fired: Damian's Account

"YOU'VE GOT THAT WRONG!"

 **Counter!**

"No it would be impossible for me to have killed her this morning! I have an alibi!" I retorted at Melinda.

She simply huffed at me. "Really? That's your excuse? Seriously if your going to lie, try to think of something more original."

"It's not a lie. He's telling the truth." Luca chimed in. "I overheard him talking to Damian in the fitness room during the investigation."

 _Damian continued talking. "...I just got up a bit late and went to go get breakfast. That was about the time I met up with Willie. He looked a tad sweaty and I asked him why. He told me he was working out at 6 this morning and finished just before we met up in the kitchen. That was we ran into you. Or to be more precise you literally ran into us."_

"Damian and Willie had been with each other when everyone was eating breakfast. And Kai was with them. Damian, what time did you meet up with Willie?" Luca asked.

Damian tapped a finger against his chin thoughtfully. "Well I got up a little after the morning announcement. So... maybe it was around 7:15? Then we made our way to the cafeteria and grabbed breakfast and Kai was already there and done eating. He accidentally tripped and we all collided, making a mess of ourselves. Kai stuck around as we talked and remade our breakfast. He left soon after and maybe another ten minutes went by before the body discovery announcement played."

"Do you think I would have been able to kill her in such a small amount of time? Besides there's something else that may prove any one of us could be the killer." I stated.

 **"I'll hack my way into your mind!" Paul exclaimed.**

"You are correct. There is something else that should be addressed. The fact that the killer very well could be Willie." Paul calmly replied.

"What? Why him?" I looked at him confused.

"Seriously? These fools just gave something vital away and you overlooked it? Then allow me to enlighten you." Paul huffed at me. "Now then Kai will you be able to defend this fool?"

 **Rebuttal Showdown!**

Truth Blades Prepared: Updated School Store, Status of Sienna's Body, Marked Pool Railing, and Snowflake Jacket

Paul began explaining. "If we are to progress we need to examine all possible culprits. **Kai is ==/== clean** but Willie is still suspicious. After all the three of you were not together the entire morning. As long as someone can defend seeing you and Damian leaving your dorms **around the time ==/== of the announcement** then the only one left without an alibi is Willie."

"No just because we weren't with him all this morning doesn't mean he's the only one suspicious." I refuted.

"That may be but he is the most suspicious. **Willie confessed ==/== to Damian** about working out this morning at 6 and was slightly wet from sweat. Don't you think that what was on him wasn't sweat at all? Perhaps it was water that splashed him when **he threw Sienna's ==/== body in the pool!**

Truth Blade Used: Status of Sienna's Body

"I'LL CUT YOUR WORDS DOWN TO SIZE!"

 **Counter!**

"No that's very unlikely the case and Mikayla can back me up on this." I told him.

"Really? You think I'm going to listen to that blubbery child?" Paul asked me with aggression.

"You have to. After all she investigated her body and you didn't because of the restrictions you put on each other." I reminded him.

Paul growled as he looked to Mikayla. "Well then speak woman."

Mikayla glared at him. "This will answer your question as well as the question before on when Sienna died. When I looked at her body it had shown signs of being in the pool for many hours. From the time Willie woke up at 6 to the time we discovered her body at around 7:30, the time frame would be about an hour and a half but her body showed that she was definitely in the pool much longer than that with how tender her skin was and how much water was soaked in. Which means Willie can't be the culprit based on that."

"Hmm. I see. I guess I was mistaken for once." Paul shrugged.

"Don't you dare think for a moment I'll forgive ya for accusin' me!" Willie shouted.

Paul turned his head from the Ultimate Cowboy. "I don't care."

Willie turned red-faced in anger quickly. "Why you dirty, lily-livered varmint! I outta hogtie you up for good!"

"I hate admitting this but it needs to be said to make this clear. Even though we have alibis for this morning those don't mean anything." I admitted.

Willie looked at me in horror. "Wait what? But you just defended me. Are you backstabbin' me already?"

"No I'm not. I'm just saying that any alibi for this morning can't be taken into account for one reason." I told him.

"And what reason is that?" Damian asked me.

"It's just as Mikayla said. If Sienna's body had been in the pool longer than an hour and a half then that would be way before Willie got up at 6." I retold everyone before continuing. "Let's not forget we all saw Sienna alive a little bit before the nighttime announcement played."

"Which would mean she was killed during nighttime. Sometime after it started and before 6 this morning." Luca finished my thought.

I nodded to him. "That's right. And unless anyone can say they were with someone else last night then that means everyone doesn't have an alibi they can use."

"That does include you right?" Melinda asked with a cheesy grin on her face. I looked away from her which made her coo. "Oh I'm right. You just incriminated yourself along with everyone else. How noble."

"Enough. We're not making much progress if we keep this going." Brenda said with a stern face.

"I agree. How about we change our topic to what means was used to kill Sienna? We'll be able to continue further in the class trial if we do so." Ollie suggested.

"Fine. Then let's..." Paul was agreeing before Marcel jumped up and down like a jackrabbit.

"Oh! Oh! Oh! I bet I know!" Marcel cheered.

Paul's face turned dark as he blankly stared at the Ultimate Surfer. "Did I give you permission to speak?"

"But Ollie has been talking without permission and so shall I!" Marcel triumphantly hollered.

'Does Marcel really know what was used to kill Sienna? I somehow doubt it but might as well listen to what he's got to say.' I pondered.

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Blood Near Drain, Pool Rules, Used First Aid Kit, Bloody Hand Towel, and Sienna's Missing Key

"I've cracked this **mystery wide open**!" Marcel shouted.

"But you said you didn't know how to look at the Monokuma File. How can you know how she died if you didn't read that or investigate her body?" Tommy inquired him.

Marcel's chest puffed up in pride. "It's simple. All you need to know is where we found the body."

"That would obviously be **the pool area** you're referring to." Brenda stated.

"And what was it we saw when we first looked around the pool? Monokuma being electrocuted when he fell in the pool! The killer probably got hit by a wave of inspiration and killed Sienna **last night in the same way!** "

Truth Bullet Fired: Pool Rules

"YOU'VE GOT THAT WRONG!"

 **Counter!**

"Sorry Marcel but that's very wrong." I said to him very forward.

"Huh? But how? She could have died by the conductors in the pool." Marcel tried arguing.

"No it's impossible. The pool rules even say so." I tapped on my camera and loaded up the picture I took of the pool rules for everyone to see.

 _1\. No running allowed_

 _2\. No foods or sodas/drinks allowed_

 _2a. However small snacks are allowed as long as no mess is left_

 _3\. No swimming during the daytime_

 _4\. If any of the following rules are broken by anyone they will be punished!_

"The rules for the pool specify that swimming during the _daytime_ is prohibited. However that doesn't mean we can't at nighttime and we already came to the conclusion that Sienna was killed during nighttime. Even if she was killed by the pool's conductors during daytime would that even mean there's a blackened?"

Shana blinked at me. "What does that mean? If someone dies then of course there's a blackened. What kind of dumb, retard question was that?"

"No it's not." Paul shocked everyone when he agreed with me. He then looked to Monokuma. "You know what he's talking about don't you?"

The demon bear laughed into his paws. "Puhuhu~ Yep! I sure do. Everyone please take another look at Rule 4 of the pool. It states that if any of the rules are broken that they will be punished!"

"And when he says punishment he means execution by _his_ hands. So what Kai is trying to say that no matter how the rule is broken, if the person is killed by an execution, by Monokuma, then there isn't a blackened." Paul furthered the discussion.

"But what if someone did shove Sienna in and she died from the rules? Maybe someone took advantage of the rules to make it seem like they weren't the culprit." Brenda said thoughtfully.

"I doubt that would be the case. Regardless if it was done on purpose by Sienna or if she was forced into it, an execution is an execution that can only be done by Monokuma." I informed her.

"Good job Kai! Great deduction! I have to say that was most impressive! Yes even if someone attempts to use the rules to their advantage if the end result is an execution for breaking the rules then they died by the rule and not because someone forced them to. It's gray area I know but I gotta say I wasn't expecting the Ultimate Actor to pick up on something like that! Are you sure we shouldn't change you're title to the Ultimate Detective?" Monokuma cooed at me.

"..."

"So then we can clear things up by saying there's no way the pool had any part in the murder even though that was already decided when we said she was killed at nighttime." Damian concluded the topic.

I shook my head at him. "Actually no. It may not have been the direct cause of death but it still plays a huge role in this murder."

"That's true. After all that was where we found the body." Tommy added.

Brenda looked thoughtfully at the ground. "Then what was the purpose of leaving her body in the pool?"

"There are multiple reasons why. First of all it was to try to keep us from her body. If we couldn't reach it then we wouldn't be able to inspect her body." I told her before continuing. "Also it was to destroy major evidence.

"Huh? Destroy evidence?" Brenda asked in shock.

Mikayla nodded in agreement. "Yes. Because the body was left in the water for so long we can't get an estimate on what time she died at. But there's more to it. The pool's chlorine acted as a cleaner to wipe away any potential DNA that could have been found on the body. I did research on this in science class and found that chlorine can have major effects on our DNA."

"I don't know if the killer knew of that fact but if not then that was just an added bonus for them. The body was also placed in the pool to throw us off track to make us think Monokuma's rule had killed her." I added.

"Then if it wasn't the pool that killed her then what did?" Marcel asked.

"Maybe if you read the Monokuma File this whole topic wouldn't have been pointless!" Mikayla growled madly at him.

"Hey! Don't blame me! No one showed me how! Besides it wasn't all pointless." Marcel huffed at her.

"It may have been unnecessary but it is good to ensure everyone is on the right track and look over all possibilities." I told Mikayla.

"See? Even my boy Kai's got my back on this." Marcel cheered with glee.

Mikayla just snorted at him and looked away.

I looked at Mikayla with worry filling my body up. 'I understand Mikayla is upset especially since this class trial is on Sienna's murder but why is she being so aggressive? I've never seen her like this before.'

"Well Marcel, the Monokuma File stated that the cause of death was from choking." Luca informed him.

"Oh! I see. Then how did she choke? Did she eat something and it went down her air pipe?" Marcel asked.

"Nope! It wasn't! I actually have a theory on what killed lil' Ultimate Ice Dancer." Willie popped in loudly.

"Um... her title was the Ultimate Figure Skater genius." Shana deadpanned at him.

Willie shrugged that off. "Well anyway I think I know how this happened. So y'all need to listen up!"

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Bloody Hand Towel, Snowflake Jacket, Plastic Shards, and Updated School Store

"I searched the school store and found something that could have choked Sienna. I found it **in the school store!** " Willie hurrahed.

"Really? What was it? **A chain** like Jayden used to lock the school store?" Brenda asked him.

"Nope. There weren't any chains in there." Willie answered her.

"What? That impossible! There were definitely chains in the school store. We even investigated the school store together." Tommy reminded Willie.

Willie nodded. "Yeah there was but not **after the inventory was changed**."

Truth Bullet Fired: Updated School Store

"I BELIEVE YOU!"

 **Consent!**

"Willie is right about that. The school store doesn't have the chains anymore. In fact everything in there was updated recently." I told Tommy.

"The school store was... updated?" Tommy asked confused.

Paul also looked baffled. "Since when was that a thing?"

Monokuma coughed lightly as if he was trying to not attract attention but obviously failed to do so as all our eyes focused on him. "Um... that's my bad. You see I'm suppose to revise the inventory in there after every class trial. Because let's be honest you kids are not very creative at times when it comes to killing so I gotta provide you guys with new gear to help spice things up. Also if you always had the same items for every class trial then things would be so unoriginal like a movie based on a book." He then began panting fast as a blush appeared on his face. "But after witnessing not one but two victims got me so exhilarated... so heated... so excited... so... so... sooooooooo..."

He paused for a moment before his head drooped again. "So anyways I forgot to do that until around the time the second motive was unveiled."

Paul sneered. "Disgusting pig."

I deadpanned a bit from that. "A-Anyways that's why everything we've seen previously in the school store is gone and there's so many new things. Even the things we can't use for murder has changed like the snacks and collectibles in the vending machine."

Brenda suddenly perked up. "Did someone say there's something collectible around here? Do I have it yet?"

Tommy chuckled. "Spoken like a true Ultimate Collector."

"So then Willie, explain to us what was used to choke Sienna." Ollie requested.

Willie nodded. "Gotcha lil' lady. So as I was searchin' the school store for potential clues, I happen to find this hidden paper that was folded up on the back of the vending machine." He then touched his handbook screen as an image he most likely took was now displayed for us to see.

I looked over it to see the paper looked like a list. I saw different flavored cupcakes, pocketknives, lighters, and many other items listed and I knew exactly what it was. "This is a list for everything currently stocked in the school store, isn't it?"

Willie smiled to me. "I'd knew you'd catch on, partner. Now look at this here item on the list." He pointed up to the list that read "Leather Straps".

"It lists off not only the items in stock but how many each item has. I went over this list to see if everything was correct to see that one thing that could be used for killing was off. The brown leather straps we found in the glass case was suppose to have ten in stock but when I counted them there were only nine. Which means that one strap has vanished. Now take that one missing strap and add it to the cause of death and I bet we have our murder weapon!"

"Uh actually Willie, the strap isn't missing. Kai and I found it." Luca enlightened him.

The cowboy looked shocked. "What? You did? Where was it?"

Luca brought up the picture of the leather strap we took. "It was locked up in Sienna's room. We found it hidden in her jacket."

"You mean her snowflake one that she always wore?" Brenda asked before she raised a finger as if she thought of something. "Now that I think about it more clearly. Sienna didn't have her jacket on. All she had on her upper body was a tight-fitting tank top. But if that's the case how did that leather strap and her jacket get to her room? Because if I remember right she had her jacket on when she locked herself in the fitness room."

"That's true. So how did those things get in her room if it was locked?" Marcel questioned.

"I bet I know." I once again chimed in. "It's gotta be because the killer took Sienna's dorm key."

"They took her key?" Shana asked me.

"Yes. I'm sure of it because when Mikayla checked her person the only thing she had on her was her student handbook. And given the circumstances that happened yesterday I doubt Sienna would have left it behind on accident. The killer most likely took her key to gain access to her room. They then proceeded to hide evidence in there so we couldn't get to it." I theorized. "They most likely held onto the key to ensure no one would get in and find the clues. However they forgot Monokuma will unlock most doors that can have potential or will unlock doors if requested. If they had remembered that then I think they would have tried hiding the strap in a more complex spot than inside her jacket and lie it on the bed."

"Then that proves it! The only reason the leather strap was hidden in Sienna's jacket and locked in her room was because it was used to kill her!" Willie roared victoriously. "I did it! I was finally useful for a class trial! Now you lil' ladies don't have to worry about trying to help out anymore."

Ollie glared at him with dark eyes. "What's that suppose to mean?"

Shana suddenly cracked her knuckles. "Yeah? Just what are you implying Billy the Kid?"

"Was that suppose to be an insult?" Willie questioned Shana with a smirk on his face.

"Why you!" Shana shrieked at him only for Tommy to reach across and hold onto Shana's shoulder.

"Shana! Control yourself! We can't fight right now. Besides we should be thankful Willie and the others helped us discover the murder weapon." Tommy told her to try and calm her down.

My right arm wrapped around my midsection with my left arm propped up on it as my hand cupped my chin as I began thinking. 'It seems everyone agrees on what was used to kill Sienna. But my investigation shows otherwise.'

I breathed out a sigh as Brenda looked at me. "Kai? You okay?"

'I gotta tell them.' I thought to myself.

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Frayed Leather Strap, Marked Pool Railing, Used First Aid Kit, Bloody Hand Towel, and Sienna's Jacket

"So then let's go over the most likely events." Melinda began speaking. "The killer **took the leather strap** from the school store."

Paul spoke next. "Then during some point last night Sienna left the fitness room. Most likely to return to her dorm since **sleeping anywhere else is prohibited**."

"Then the culprit cut her off at some point and attacked!" Brenda added looking fierce as if she was monologuing.

"They probably waited **outside the door** to the fitness room and hid up against the wall so when Sienna came out, she **wouldn't notice them** immediately." Damian guessed.

Willie raised his fist in the air and shouted, "That's when the lily-livered snake took **the leather strap** and killed her!"

Truth Bullet Fired: Marked Pool Railing

"YOU'VE GOT THAT WRONG!"

 **Counter!**

"Sorry guys. I hate to say it but that leather strap can't be the murder weapon." I announced.

"What? Why not?" Willie looked heartbroken that I just interjected him.

Paul glared at me. "You better not be making us rethink everything like you did with the first trial."

"But it's the truth. I can prove it. When me and Luca found the strap I wanted to do an experiment." I told them.

 _I silently nodded as he took the strap and wrapped it around my wrist before he began pulling on each end making the leather dig and rub into my skin. I won't lie it hurt. I don't think Luca realized how much pressure he was putting on it. I tried to suppress the pain but one particular tug sent a big jolt that made me instinctively jump with a moan as I bit my lip._

 _He noticed this and immediately stopped removing the strap off me. "Kai, I told you to tell me if I started hurting you." ... I noticed that my wrist had taken on a slight brown hue and I could feel that this would definitely bruise up sometime soon._

"This leather strap is definitely strong enough to not break if enough pressure is applied so it can be used to choke someone but it would leave residue behind." I declared.

"It would?" Marcel asked in surprise.

"This particular leather is quite rubbery and not legit so it rubs off pretty easily and leaves a mark. That's what happened when Luca did that to me." I lifted my wrist and showed everyone. "My skin is a bit darker here because of the strap and it bruised me a bit."

"Luca hurt you? Why was he so rough?" Damian questioned me.

Luca only looked away in shame but I interjected. "N-No. I asked him to and I was too stubborn to ask him to stop before it started bruising. Besides if he didn't then I wouldn't have learned of this truth. You see I know where the strap was used on originally."

"That would be around Sienna's neck! It was used to choke her after all." Melinda hollered.

"No it wasn't. It was used on the pool railing." I told her.

"Uh... the pool railing?" Brenda looked puzzled.

I loaded the picture. "See? The same brown marking on my wrist was found on the railing here. Though from this point of view it would look like rust so no one would notice right away but when I felt it it had a grimy feel to it. Just as the leather strap does. But that residue that came from the strap wasn't on Sienna's neck at all."

 **"My diagnosis is never wrong!" Mikayla exclaimed.**

"I'm sorry Kai but you're wrong." Mikayla growled at me.

"H-Huh? Mikayla, what are you doing?" I asked, disturbed by her sudden outburst.

"If you can't see why your reasoning is wrong then I'll make you see." Mikayla's eyes seem to darken as I felt her words send chills down my spine.

 **Rebuttal Showdown!**

Truth Blades Prepared: Pool Rules, Frayed Leather Strap, Status of Sienna's Body, and Leaking Shower Head

"Did you think that maybe something happened to the mark on Sienna's neck? Remember that we **found her ==/== body** floating in the pool. She was in there for hours! It's possible **the water washed ==/== the mark off**!" Mikayla shouted.

"No just because the body was found in the water doesn't mean leaving her in there long enough would wash it off. It would need to be rinsed off by hand with how grimy it is." I fought back.

"Then maybe they used **one of ==/== the showers** in the locker room! Or maybe they kept her **near the edge ==/== of the pool** and washed it off with the water there! I can't prove that the mark was there that is true. But you can't prove that it wasn't there either! You have **nothing to ==/== go off of**!"

Truth Blade Used: Status of Sienna's Body

"I'LL CUT YOUR WORDS DOWN TO SIZE!"

 **Counter!**

"Mikayla, you couldn't have forgotten already. There's no way you'd forget such a crucial detail when you did your autopsy on Sienna." I said to her.

 _Mikayla lifted Sienna's head carefully as she pointed to her neck. Me and Luca moved in for a closer look and we saw bruises on her neck. But taking a closer look at it I saw two lined bruises across her Adam's apple and a few more on the sides and back of her neck. "Are those finger impressions?"_

 _Mikayla nodded. "This indicates she was choked just like the Monokuma File said. There are more bruises on her face and arms too so she might be swollen from being beaten up badly."_

"There were very faded but specific bruises on her neck that you pointed out to us. Ones that looked like finger impressions." I reminded her and told everyone else.

"F-Finger impressions!" Shana stuttered in horror.

"That's right and if you look at my wrist right now..." I once again lifted my hand and displayed my injury to the others. "Does this bruising on me look like it was made by someone's fingers?"

Paul answered first. "No it doesn't. It looks like you have one big stripe on your wrist. Not multiple little ones."

"Then if the bruising I got from the strap and the bruising found on Sienna's neck aren't the same then that leaves only one conclusion." I heard Mikayla stifle a growl as her fists clenched themselves by her sides as she lightly trembled. I closed my eyes as I continued. "Sienna didn't get choked to death by the leather strap. She was choked by something else. The answer to that is also obvious now. The murder weapon was the killer's own hands."

When my eyes open, most everyone's faces were drained of color as they trembled in fear and fright.

"They used their hands? That's so cruel!" Damian shouted as I saw his eyes water up.

Luca looked down. "We also saw that there were more bruises on the sides of her neck and two big ones on her Adam's apple. judging from those we can determine where the killer was positioned when they choked Sienna."

I felt my heart ping in pain with every beat. It hurt to think about it but it needed to be answered. "The culprit was directly in front of her when they choked her. Sienna died... knowing the face of her killer."

"Ghh!" Mikayla gasped inwardly.

"If she were choked from behind then the two big impressions, in other words the thumbs, would have been on the back of her neck and the other eight would be on the front. But since that's not the case then that means what Kai said about their positioning is correct." Melinda chimed in before a hair-raising smile streaked across her face. "Which means that we found our culprit."

I felt my heart suddenly stop. "W-What?"

"Isn't it obvious now? It's Mikayla." She continued.

"W-What the hell? WHAT THE HELL?!" Willie screamed in horror.

Shana violently shook her head. "NO! That can't be right! Mikayla and Sienna loved each other like sisters! There's no way she could kill her!"

"But Mikayla just fought back against Kai about something she told him in the first place. That's too suspicious. Plus she's been high-strung ever since this class trial started. I bet it's because she's nothing more than the trembling wolf hiding in sheep's skin. Hiding her lies."

Brenda quickly hopped in. "I have to agree with Shana. Mikayla... killed Sienna? I simply can't believe that would ever happen!"

"Then allow us to enlighten you." Now Paul stepped in as he looked to Ollie. "Go ahead and tell them what happened last night."

I looked over at the tattooed girl. "O-Ollie?"

She had her eyes closed as she began speaking. "I was told not to mention what I witnessed until I was told. And honestly I didn't care about the order. I just never had a reason to bring it up until now. You see last night I didn't go directly to bed. I stayed up for a few hours in the rec room. I was working on new tattoo designs for quite some time. However I soon heard someone walking outside the room. At first I didn't think anything of it since the door was cracked open and I just thought I was being a bit paranoid but after about half an hour I heard footsteps again. This time I went over to the door to see who it was and..."

Suddenly Melinda interrupted her. "And it was Mikayla!"

Ollie looked at her confused. "What?"

"She was there too. After all Ollie told me everything." Paul added.

"..." We all looked at the Ultimate Veterinarian in shock as she simply stood there. No attempt to rebuttal, to interject, to argue, or fight back. She just stood their silent and unmoving as she looked away from us all.

"M-Mikayla?" Damian called out to her nervously.

I pondered over and over, trying to wrap my head around this unbelievable scene that unfolded before me. 'I-Is this really true? Could Mikayla really have done it? Was Sienna murdered by Mikayla's own hands?'

 **Class Trial Intermission**

* * *

 _Wow! I can't believe how amazing this turned out! I'm even shocked at how well thought out and smoothly I have been able to put this class trial altogether. Well that's what I think but that might not be what you think. Or maybe it is? If I wanna know then let me know what you thought of the first portion of the trial and what you think will be the overall outcome. I'm so curious on your thoughts and I can't wait to get the second part of the class trial written! So until that time comes I'll see you when that happens... if it happens... Puhuhuhu~_


	15. Chapter 2: Class Trial Part 2

**Class Trial Resume**

Mikayla's eyes remained closed as her face was unmoving. 'Why is she not refuting them? Did she really kill Sienna, who she swore to protect?' I thought in despair at the thought.

"Mikyala... Why aren't you saying anything? TELL THEM THEIR WRONG DAMMIT!" Shana shouted at her with tears peaking out of her eyes.

"..." Mikayla stayed silent.

"Then... Mikayla really did do it. She's making no argument." Brenda looked away in sadness, rubbing her wrist.

Melinda chuckled. "That was too easy. It almost wasn't worth the hunt but this class trial wasn't all that bad."

Tommy glared at her. "Just shut up! This isn't a game!"

"But it is. The game where the strong prevail over the weak. Where the killer fights back against the innocent. Where we live to win or die and lose. Your emotions will ultimately betray you here by trusting others. Mikayla is the prime example of that. Sienna trusted her with all her heart and she took advantage of naivety." She said to us before looking to Mikayla. "I gotta say that was well played for a stupid dreamer like you."

"Then let us proceed with voting time. Monokuma..." Paul passed the torch to him.

Monokuma laughed. "If everyone agrees to move on then we'll..."

"No! Not yet!" Luca suddenly shouted.

"Grr." Monokuma growled.

Melinda glared at Luca. "What? Why not? You better not suggest that it's not her."

"I will admit that seeing Mikayla make no aim to defend herself is suspicious and how she fought against Kai was also very strange and unlike herself, but that doesn't mean she could have done it!" Luca pointed at her.

Ollie cocked her head in a questioning way. "But what's your reasoning?"

Luca shrugged. "Well I just think that out of everyone here she has a 100% chance that she wouldn't kill Sienna. I've seen the way she tended and protected Sienna. I saw true dedication in her actions and words that drove Sienna onward to improving herself. Out of everyone here I believe in her friendship with Sienna the most!"

I blinked at Luca in amazement. I have definitely seen this strong belief before. That's when I felt a smile appear on my face as I looked up. "... I will believe in her too."

So many shocked expressions looked to me. I even noticed Mikayla looking at me in the same regard and shock.

Paul spoke up with an evil glint in his eye. "You better have a good explanation for yourself!"

"I'm simply going off what I feel in my heart and what my experience is telling me." I told them as I thought back to the investigation.

 _After a minute of utter silence Luca walked to her, knelt behind her, and hugged her close. I was just surprised as Mikayla was by the sudden contact with his chest against her back. "We really need your help. I know it hurts but you have to push forward. This is for our sake as much as Sienna. We saw how strong she wanted to be so I bet right now she'd want you to stay strong for her sake. She believed in you and so will I."_

"Luca told Mikayla that because Sienna trusted and believed in her that he would do the same. I'm following that belief. If Sienna was here instead of someone else, she'd be fighting all of us to protect her! I know this from the time I've seen them spend together, from the things I came to learn about them, and from knowing who they are I will believe in Mikayla like Luca does." I then pointed my hand forward with a shout, "Like Sienna does!"

"If Sienna believed in her then I will too!" Shana cheered.

Damian nodded his head with his arms folded. "I can't argue with that."

"Might as well." Willie shrugged.

"You're all as stupid as Marcel." Melinda snarled.

"Why does everyone target me, man?" Marcel drooped.

"It may be stupid for you but it's the sole reason we need to continue! There's more we can talk about!" I told her.

"No! There's no reason to continue!" Melinda shouted.

"Yes there is! Stop arguing and trying to make us think you're the only one with any sense around here!" Luca shouted back.

"But can we really believe in Mikayla after being so quiet?" Brenda asked confused.

 **"She's the culprit!" "She's not the culprit!" "Who is the culprit?" Melinda, Luca, and Brenda all shouted.**

 **Mass Panic Debate!**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Damian's Account, Updated School Store, Blood Near Drain, and Monokuma File

"I'm telling you **she's the culprit**!" "Mikayla loved Sienna so much!" "I'm getting confused with all of this shouting!" Melinda screamed out, Luca defended, and Brenda cried out.

"She didn't defend herself when accused!" "But that love can be manipulated." "Then let someone with expert knowledge do the thinking for you." Melinda continued to shout at us, Paul argued, and Willie whispered over to her.

"But she may have **had a reason** to do so." "But the motive didn't sway Mikayla. That's what I think!" "Are you making another sexist comment again?" Ollie said thoughtfully, Shana shouted, and Brenda growled at him.

"Of course there was! It's because she's guilty!" "You have **no way** of knowing that!" "What? I'm not being sexist. I'm just being **honest**." Melinda retorted, Paul sneered, and Willie said in shock at her accusation.

"There's **nothing more** that can suggest we need to continue!" "I don't know it! I believe it!" "Sure. Stop **lying through your teeth**!"

Truth Bullet Fired: Blood Near Drain

"I CAN HEAR YOU!"

 **Counter!**

I shook my head. "No Melinda there is more to discuss. There are still many things we haven't gone over. Such as the blood I found."

"Blood? You found blood?" Melinda asked me through gritted teeth.

"I did. But that's not the only thing. Me and Luca discovered a few things unusual." I replied.

Ollie jumped in. "That's right. There is more to talk about and this time, you better not interrupt me again." She sent a glare at Melinda.

"She interrupted you?" Brenda asked her.

"When I was giving my testimony. I didn't finish speaking before Melinda said Mikayla was the only one I saw. But that's not the case." Ollie answered.

Luca looked at her with a slight stare of concern. "Really? But didn't Paul agree with her."

"No. What I said was, "She was there _too_ "; As in she was there along with the others Ollie told me about." Paul reexplained himself.

"Then why the fuck didn't you specify that?" Shana yelled at the hacker.

Paul looked away from her. "Simply because when Mikayla was blamed for the murder she made no jump to defend herself as if she was caught red-handed. I still think that was very suspicious of her so I still don't trust her."

"Then Ollie please continue with your testimony." Luca gave her the go ahead.

Ollie nodded before proceeding. "So as I was saying earlier I heard footsteps outside and went out to see Brenda walking towards the dorms first. Later I heard more footsteps and saw Mikayla walking to and from the dorms, then later again it was Luca, and finally I saw Shana not long after. She was the last person for about three hours I saw before Willie, who was walking in the direction of the second floor, at about 6 this morning."

Truth Bullet Added: Ollie's Account

"So then four people all walked out sometime during nighttime. Then they are all suspicious." Paul stated.

"And Mikayla is still one of them." Melinda added.

"What were you all doing out so late?" Damian asked them.

"I was worried about Sienna so I went up to see if she was okay but no one was around the fitness room so I went back to my dorm." Shana confessed.

"Me too! I wanted to ensure her safety and I did see her but I was feeling sleepy so I went back to my room." Brenda told us.

"I just couldn't sleep. I went out to run around the school but I stayed on the first floor. When I felt I was done I went back to my dorm too."

"..." Mikayla however remained silent.

"Someone's not fessing up. The blackened per chance?" Melinda offered.

"No accusations yet. We'll find a way to make her crack." Paul said to Melinda who growled at that.

"Well then let's continue. There's still more I need to share with you all. More clues we found that are too important to overlook." I told them.

"Such as?" Melinda asked me, very perturbed that we were continuing.

"Such as the fact that the jacket and leather strap weren't the only things Luca and I found in Sienna's room." I paused as I loaded up the bloody hand towel we found. "This hand towel was found hidden in her garbage can behind the door."

"It's covered in a good amount of blood. But doesn't that strike anyone as weird?" Luca questioned everyone.

"What's so weird about it? I don't see what's wrong about that." Marcel looked puzzled.

'It is weird. We need to show them why.' I thought as we began debating again.

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Monokuma File, Blood Near Drain, Used First Aid Kit, and Bloody Hand Towel

"So can anyone tell me what was off about the hand towel we found?" Luca asked again.

"But I said **there's nothing weird** about that hand towel. Isn't it?" Marcel said thoughtfully.

"Maybe it's because of **where it was hidden**?" Brenda suggested.

Willie hopped in. "I bet where it **came from** is suspicious!"

"What about the blood itself? I wanna know about **who it belongs to**." Ollie stated.

Truth Bullet Fired: Monokuma File

"I BELIEVE YOU!"

 **Consent!**

"Ollie has the right idea. We need to think about where the blood on that towel came from." I told them.

"Huh? Wasn't it from Sienna? After all she's the one that died." Marcel said.

I shook my head. "No. You can tell since the Monokuma File says this..."

 _"Her body was discovered in the pool. The cause of death is choking. The victim's body is also swollen and majorly bruised."_

"It doesn't mention any cuts or open wounds on her body and choking her would not have caused blood to spill out." I explained.

"Then if the blood on the towel isn't from the victim then whose blood is it?" Damian asked.

"It's obviously the killer's." I answered. "After all if it wasn't why would they put effort into hiding it in the same room as the jacket and strap? Because they wanted to ensure it wouldn't be found behind Sienna's locked door."

"I bet the killer did intentionally set the jacket and strap out in the open to draw attention away from the rest of the room and away from such an important piece of evidence." Luca guessed.

Paul chuckled. "I have to admit this blackened is very smart for using so many misleading tactics but very dumb for not doing a better job."

"So many traps the murderer set up to make us think of the wrong answer. That is very clever but downright dirty too." Tommy growled inwardly.

"Let's not forget our primary suspects." Melinda pointed out as everyone began looking at each other.

I happened to look at Mikayla and noticed her looking over the entire group. I could see tears perk in her eyes only when she looked over particular areas in the seats. I sensed sadness in them. I sensed something more and I figured her out in that moment.

"Mikayla, I know why your resisting to talk. You know something big. Something you didn't tell me." I said softly to her.

She looked at in surprise. "Huh?"

"This entire time you've been acting strange. I first noticed this right before we got on the elevator." I told her.

 _"So real quick, did you discover anything new with Sienna's body that can help?" I asked her._

 _Mikayla's sympathetic smile suddenly vanished as she removed her hands from mine and cast her gaze away. "Unfortunately no. I found no hints hidden on her body. We only have what was clear as day. Nothing more." Mikayla then turned and continued to proceed to the elevator._

"You lied to me when you said that, didn't you? You lied because you're scared. You're scared to discover who backstabbed us and who killed Sienna. You don't want to know who betrayed you. Betrayed Sienna. That's why you didn't defend yourself. Because if you did you would have said something that would pin the blame on someone else. But remember if you don't fight back then Sienna's killer will get away and we'll all die! So please tell me what you know. If you truly wish for Sienna to find peace then tell us what you discovered."

Mikayla looked heartbroken as I spoke as she whimpered and trembled. "The tiny bump on her neck..."

Luca blinked. "What?"

"What the hell do you mean by that? What tiny bump?!" Paul shouted at her madly.

"She had a nasty looking mosquito bite on her neck, right above her collarbone. But that's all that was right?" Luca questioned Mikayla confused.

"I thought so too... until I got closer. I saw that she actually had a small hole that the bump most likely formed from. It's not noticeable at first glance because the water swelled it mostly shut. Also I found dead skin underneath her right hand's fingernails." Mikayla went on to explain.

Truth Bullet Updated: Status of Sienna's Body

'So with this new information I bet I can gather what it is relevant to.' I wondered to myself before I spoke out. "Then I think this means Sienna's cause of death has another layer we don't know about."

"Are you kidding me? You said we wouldn't have to discuss this further! She died from someone choking her! Don't you dare suggest otherwise!" Melinda screamed at me.

"But we didn't know about this information! It may prove that we fell for another trap the killer set up!" Luca refuted.

"But Mikayla has been suspicious from the start and you want me to believe her now? I refuse." Paul sneered.

"Well I'll believe her over you any day!" Shana taunted him.

"We need to believe Mikayla!" I hollered out.

"No we don't!" Melinda shouted back.

 **"HOLD ON THERE!" Monokuma exclaimed, cutting us off.**

"This is getting us nowhere! It seems your all split on this matter. Which means... it's time for the American Hope's Peak Academy to proudly present its very own morphenomenal trail grounds!" Monokuma cheered.

"What? Not this again!" Willie moaned.

"Yes this again! Now let's go!" Monokuma shouted.

'I gotta make them see that we need to factor in Mikayla's words. If we can't do that then we all might be in big trouble.' I thought.

The panel soon popped up in from of Monokuma as he pulled out the key with his head on it. He inserted it into the panel and turned it as we saw it light up in front of Monokuma. Suddenly the whole place lit up as I felt my podium drop a bit and then began levitating up like before as did Monokuma and his throne. And much like before I saw that everyone's was following after me in a stair like pattern with Sienna's podium next to me and Brenda would be that last one floating up. Our podiums began mixing around as the formed two lines in front of Monokuma as we faced each other with the left side consisting of Paul, Melinda, Marcel, Ollie, Brenda, and Willie and the right line had me, Mikayla, Shana, Luca, Damian, and Tommy.

 **Debate Scrum!**

Question: What was used to kill Sienna?

Answer 1: Killer Choked Her With Their Hands

Answer 2: Killer Used Something Else

 **START!**

"We already know what caused Sienna to die! She was choked by the killer's hands!" Melinda shouted.

Shana stepped up. "But there's a chance we overlooked a vital clue that might have actually caused her to die."

"But can we be sure if this is another trap the killer planted?" Marcel asked.

Tommy took the lead. "We can't be sure unless we discuss the potential trap they placed."

"But what could possibly be proved here? We already covered everything." Brenda said confused.

Luca answered her. "No. We covered a lot of ground but not enough to say Mikayla is the killer."

"Outta everyone here, Mikayla has been super suspicious." Willie noted.

Damian was next to step up to the plate. "Remember Ollie saw more than just Mikayla which means she's not the only one suspicious."

"I believe what she has to say is more deciet since she's been silent and dodgy this entire time." Paul said.

It was my turn. "You may think that but I have every reason to believe her now!"

"Mikayla has lied to us. Should we really trust her so easily?" Ollie questioned us.

Mikayla spoke up. "I may have lied before but I can prove I'm telling the truth now!"

Our statements, arguments, and engagements felt like they were pushing back at each other until our group overpowered theirs!

"THIS IS WHAT WE DECIDED!"

 **Full Counter!**

Soon our podiums drifted back down as the debate was done. Everyone was silent until I broke it. "We need to discuss this new information and see if Mikayla is telling the truth or not. If we can show that what she hid is fact or fiction will make everyone satisfied and come to a more unanimous vote. If we don't go into voting time with everyone feeling confident then we're just asking for trouble."

After another second of silence Paul grumbled a bit. "Fine. But only because not everyone is willing to continue to voting time."

"That would be best. After all we only get one vote so we can't afford to get it wrong." Brenda sighed.

"Then let's discuss this. So we believe that maybe the choking by the killer's hands may be another trap correct?" Ollie asked.

"Then what was the actual means against Sienna to kill her?" Tommy asked.

Soon someone raised their hand. It was Marcel. "Um... I might have something that may help."

"You? What could you possibly have that I don't know about?" Paul asked him, looking furious.

"W-Well I didn't have time to tell you what I found because the investigation was over when Monokuma made the announcement so I grabbed my clue and brought it here since I thought I couldn't discuss it before the class trial." Marcel confided.

"What? Come on. Out with it. Let's see this clue you found." Paul demanded.

Marcel obliged to his demand and reached into his swimming trunks!

Shana screeched. "YOU BETTER NOT BE FISHING OUT YOUR DICK, SICKO!"

Marcel looked up in shock. "No! I-I have pockets on the inside of my trunks! I swear my penis isn't in there!"

"What a stupid lie!" Brenda shivered in disgust.

His face turned red with anger. "I'm not lying! Watch this!" He shouted before he pulled his hand out and held up a small vile high above his head. Or more precisely... a small bottle of... soy sauce. We could all see that the bottle was nearly half empty.

"Is that soy sauce?" Shana gasped in horror.

"Yeah! I remember this bottle yesterday when I used it on my pancakes last night before going to bed early." Marcel told us.

"You ate breakfast food at night and used soy sauce instead of syrup? Disgusting." Ollie stated blankly.

"Hey! I happen to like the taste of soy very much." Marcel growled at her.

"Get to the point dipshit!" Melinda shouted holding her knife in her hand.

Marcel was quick to continue. "A-Anyway the bottle wasn't open until I used it and I didn't even use much at all. The line was just underneath the neck of bottle. But when we investigated the kitchen, I noticed the bottle was gone. I soon found it in the library, hidden out of sight on the librarian desk just before the investigation ended."

"AND YOU WAITED NOW TO TELL US SOMETHING SO IMPORTANT!" Tommy shouted at him.

"I didn't realize that the soy might have played something in the murder after we discussed the choking method of murder." Marcel drooped as he lightly tapped his index fingers together.

Truth Bullet Added: Soy Sauce Bottle

"So then if this soy sauce was used to kill Sienna, we need to figure out how they got so much of it into her." Brenda said thoughtfully.

"Then let's do it." I said nervously.

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Soy Sauce Bottle, Ollie's Account, Plastic Shards, and Monokuma File

"If that much soy sauce was used, then it **definitely means that's what killed Sienna!** " Shana shouted.

"We can't know that for sure unless we find out how so much soy was put in her. The culprit might have **taken soy sauce out** to trick us yet again." Melinda stated.

"Or Marcel used it more this morning and just forgot." Brenda shrugged.

Marcel folded his arms. " **DID NOT!** "

"I didn't see anyone use the soy sauce this morning." Damian noted.

"Then maybe it was used to kill Sienna." Luca replied. "If so how'd they get so much in her system?"

"They must have **shoved the bottle into her mouth** and forced it down." Ollie suggested.

Tommy shook his head. "Nah. They probably **add** **ed it into her snacks** before she went into the fitness room."

"But they wouldn't know about Sienna's allergy before she locked herself in. It's more likely they simply **poured it all over her face!** " Shana theorized.

Mikayla looked away. "Maybe they **forced it through her skin** somehow and into her system."

Truth Bullet Fired: Plastic Shards

"I BELIEVE YOU!"

 **Consent!**

"That's... That's it. They forced it into her skin!" I shouted out.

Mikayla looked away in pain.

"What? How is that possible?" Damian asked confused.

'There's only one way to get a liquid forced into you through your skin. I don't like singling us out but it's the only way.' I thought before I spoke up. "It was a syringe or more accurately... an EpiPen."

"Now what kind of hair-brained idiot are you? I looked over the school store inventory list and it didn't say anythin' about no syringes or EpiPens." Willie tried to counter me.

"You're right. The school didn't have any in stock throughout our time here. But Sienna did." I told Willie.

He blinked in surprise. "What? She did?"

I began explaining. "Before entering the school Sienna had five EpiPens on her and was suppose to give it to a teacher she trusts. But given our situation she had no choice but to give it to someone else she trusted. She eventually gave them to Mikayla. That was what we were told by Mikayla... before she gave four of us a syringe each. Those four are me, Brenda, Luca, and Shana with Mikayla holding onto the last one."

"Then you five are the most likely culprits. And once again Mikayla is one of them." Melinda smirked at Mikayla.

"But why are we the most likely culprits?" Shana asked surprised.

"It's because of the plastic shards Tommy and Damian found in the garbage cans in the fitness room. I noticed there was something written in ink on them but it was faded so I couldn't make it out at first. But then I realized they weren't words but measurements. I bet you anything if we had all the pieces it would make an EpiPen." I told her. I loaded the picture and showed everyone the pieces. "Mikayla, you know what those syringes look like. Do these look like pieces of a broken EpiPen?"

She looked over the picture and slowly nodded.

"If that really is the case then it can only be on of us five since no one else knew about Mikayla having possession of Sienna's syringes or about her giving them to us. The culprit took their EpiPen and emptied it's original content with Sienna's medicine and replaced it with the soy sauce." I replied.

"But how did the syringe break in the first place? If the culprit broke it then all we'd have to do is ask the suspect to show theirs and then we'd find them." Paul theorized.

"It probably happened during the struggle with Sienna. The killer most likely surprised her when she left the fitness room and when the syringe was stabbed into her she most likely tried to pull it out while the killer kept it in place to ensure the soy would get in her system and as a result of the pressure on the Epipen, it broke or at the very least cracked. Then all they would need to do is tackle her to the ground to ensure she didn't run for help. Then either the killer let the soy kill her or they did choke her to make her die faster. That's when they punched her face repeatedly so her face would be covered in bruises to make us think she was mercilessly beaten and choked to death. Also if the cracked syringe was discovered by someone they would need to explain how it happened and if the soy was connected tothe murder then they'd be the most likely culprit. So to avoid it, entirely they destroyed the syringe and scattered it's pieces inside the garbage cans in the fitness room and other places to ensure no one would piece it together." As I continued explaining, my eyes went over to see Mikayla tremble. "Someone with an EpiPen betrayed us. They used the gift Mikayla gave us to help protect Sienna and used it against her and kill her."

"That's terrible. So someone really did use her allergy to their advantage." Ollie said sorrowfully.

"We have seen many traps before in this case but that takes the cake. This culprit must have one major silver tongue if they've been able to deceive us for most of the trial." Damian noted.

"Someone with a silver tongue. Someone whose been deceiving us. Even as the Ultimate Actor, I should be able to see any kind of act. Acts of paranoia, lines someone delivers, and their overall performance. I've seen it multiple times now but never acknowledged them until now. No, it's more like... I didn't _want_ to." I confessed.

"Kai? Are you telling us... you know who the killer is?" Willie asked me nervously.

I looked away. "I wasn't able to make certain connections until a while ago. Thinking back on things I should have realized it sooner. But... I have a hunch on who it might be."

Mikayla remained silent when I looked to her. She knew what was coming and she couldn't prepare for it. Everyone's eyes followed mine as they all looked at Mikayla; some in shock, some in horror, and other who looked displeased.

But before anything was said my head turned to the first person... directly to my left.

"..."

"..."

"...Will you tell me why you lied to me, Brenda?"

All eyes immediately left Mikayla to look at me and then one space over to Brenda whose gaze was still stuck on me.

"What are you saying Kai? I didn't lie to you." Brenda responded.

I glared at her. "Yes you did. Remember?"

 _"Mikayla hasn't seen Sienna around and she wanted help finding her. She asked me to grab a few others to help her look so I grabbed the first two closest people and you happened to be the second person." Brenda informed me._

I pointed to her. "What you said has contradictions because when I spoke to Mikayla..."

 _"Is there anything that you noticed this morning?" Luca asked Mikayla._

 _She shook her head. "No. Nothing and no one out of the ordinary. It's just when I couldn't find Sienna I ran into Brenda and she offered to go get people to help us find Sienna."_

"You had told me Mikayla asked you to go find others to help find Sienna. When in reality, _you_ had offered." I told her.

Brenda just looked at me mortified. "But Kai..."

I didn't give her a chance to speak as I continued. "That's not the only inconsistency I found in your testimony this morning."

 _I looked at Brenda a bit confused. "But shouldn't we check the first floor too?"_

 _"No. Besides her dorm, which was left unlocked and was empty, there's no where on the first floor she would be." She replied._

"You told me her dorm room was left unlocked and was empty. But if that were the case then all that evidence we found in her room wouldn't have been there. The only reason Sienna's dorm key was missing is because the killer used her room to hide evidence and no killer would leave a door with evidence unlocked." I glared accusingly at her.

"Kai, what are you doing? Why are you attacking me like this? I-I don't understand. You must have misheard me because I didn't say those things! And now you think I was lying? That's beyond cruel!" Brenda cried as tears filled her eyes.

"Is... Is it really Brenda? I mean she's a collector. Why would she kill Sienna?" Tommy asked puzzled.

She sniffled as she wiped her eyes. "No. It's fine that you suspect me but don't worry Kai. I'm not a damsel. I will show you I can protect myself. I will show you your errors in accusing me."

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Truth Bullets Added: Soy Sauce Bottle, Damian's Account, Updated School Store, and Bloody Hand Towel

"I'll tell you how I couldn't be the culprit! I had **no way of getting the soy sauce!** " Brenda shouted triumphantly.

"Really? How? Everyone had access to the kitchen." Damian said curiously.

Brenda shook her head. "Sorry Dami-Bear but you got it wrong."

Damian blushed at the nickname. "D-Dami-Bear?"

"I'm telling the truth. You wanna know why? The kitchen was inaccessible at the time. And why you may ask? Because it was **nighttime** when we left Sienna!" Brenda shouted out.

Truth Bullet Fired: Soy Sauce Bottle

"YOU'VE GOT THAT WRONG!"

 **Counter!**

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "Brenda, you're lying again. Marcel said he had put that soy sauce back after using it last night but this morning when his group investigated the kitchen the soy sauce bottle was gone which means it had to have been taken before nighttime since that's when Sienna was killed."

"Gah!" Brenda gasped.

"After we left Sienna we all went straight to our dorms which it wasn't nighttime by then since I know I went to sleep before the nighttime announcement. We didn't stop by the kitchen so Marcel was probably eating at that time. As long as he left before nighttime that would give you plenty of time to get the soy sauce. However due to you having to get everything ready, you probably took too long and you couldn't get the soy bottle back to the kitchen before nighttime was in place."

 **"I'm collecting my own deduction!" Brenda exclaimed.**

"Kai? Why are you doing this to me? I've been your biggest fan for years. We spent so much time together and gotten to be great friends. So why? WHY ARE YOU TRYING TO GET EVERYONE KILLED?" Brenda growled lowly. Her expression suddenly grew dark as her ponytail and hair seemed to stand on edge.

 **Rebuttal Showdown!**

Truth Swords Prepared: Damian's Account, Ollie's Account, and Soy Sauce Bottle

"Kai, please don't try to be a hero! You're thinking about this too much! If you overthink things your bound to overlook them too! What if **Marcel took ==/== the bottle** and used it to kill Sienna. He admitted to **using it ==/== last night!** You should suspect him! He's probably the killer!" Brenda shouted.

"No we already discussed how the syringe was used to inject the soy sauce in her. Marcel wasn't aware of the EpiPens. But you did since you were given one." I refuted.

Brenda chuckled as she held up her finger. "But **anyone ==/== of us** could have grabbed that bottle before nighttime. Besides **you had an ==/== EpiPen too!** Yeah... that must be it. You're trying to pin it on me because you're the killer! You grabbed the soy bottle and **strode right up ==/== to the second floor** to kill poor Sienna!"

Truth Blade Used: Ollie's Account

"I'LL CUT YOUR WORDS DOWN TO SIZE!"

 **Counter!**

"Once again your wrong, Brenda. I can't possibly be the killer." I slowly shook my head at her.

"Oh really? Why not?" Her dark gaze remained unfazed.

"Because Ollie never saw me last night." I reminded her.

 _"I heard footsteps outside and went out to see Brenda walking towards the dorms first. Later I heard more footsteps and saw Mikayla walking to and from the dorms, then later again it was Luca, and finally I saw Shana not long after. She was the last person for about three hours I saw before Willie, who was walking in the direction of the second floor, at about 6 this morning." Ollie finished explaining to us._

"The only people she saw last night after nighttime were you, Mikayla, Luca, and Shana. Then Willie later at 6. She never saw me because I never left my dorm!" I told her which made her growl at me.

"Still that leaves three other suspects besides me that could have killed her too!" Brenda pointed out.

Paul sighed. "Even though this collector seems to have lost her marble collection, she does bring up a valid point. Kai has been scratched off the suspect list but there are four others who all had the syringes and all who were seen outside the rec room by Ollie."

"Actually we can probably narrow the list down more." I said to the others.

Shana looked a bit hopeful. "Really? How?"

"We already discussed how that hand towel has the killer's blood on it which means if the killer was hurt then they probably did everything they could to hide an injury that could link them to the murder. After all Mikayla found dead skin under Sienna's fingernail on her left hand which would also be the reason why there were small traces of blood around Sienna's body. She probably did bleed out a bit from being stabbed with the syringe but I bet most of that blood was when Sienna scratched her attacker when trying to fight back." I replied to Shana.

"And what actions would suggest they took to hide the injury?" Melinda asked.

'What was the actions they took? I know one thing they would have done.' I thought before speaking up. "They would need to patch it up using the first aid kit found in the Nurse's office. When Luca obtained it to use when Tommy cut himself, he noticed something was off."

"Yeah I had noticed it had been used before I grabbed it for Tommy. The band aid box had tears in the lid suggesting it had been roughly opened, the Neosporin was squished which meant it was also used, and a roll of skin-colored bandages were noticeably smaller than the others." Luca testified.

"If someone wants to confess to using the first aid kit better explain how they got hurt and show us proof but no one will because they wanted to hide it since they used the skin-colored bandages specifically instead of the white ones." I mentioned.

"Maybe it was Luca. After all he knew where the first aid kit was." Brenda accused.

"It wasn't me! Besides the first aid kit was out in the open." Luca said tensely.

"But we should still question you since you can't be cleared of suspicion based on that alone." Paul reminded him.

'No I know Luca is innocent. I can prove that too.' I pondered as another debate was underway.

 **Non-Stop Debate!**

Truth Bullets Loaded: Plastic Shards, Monokuma File, Leaking Shower Head, Ollie's Account, and Pool Rules

"If Luca was **injured by Sienna** , then he would need to take care of the cut." Damian said.

Brenda pointed at him accusingly. "That's why he went to the Nurse's office to patch himself up! **He** **knew where the first aid kit was** when he got it for Tommy which means he got it when he went to fix his wound."

"Anyone could have seen it if they looked." Luca pointed out.

"It was **easily accessible** and could be in anyone's view with the glass cabinet door it was stored behind." Mikayla noted.

"But he still could have used it!" Brenda sneered at her.

Melinda put her hand to her chin. "But it's quite a bit of a way to get to the Nurse's office. Even with the hand towel it can only hold so much blood before it drips. He would need to **wash off any excessive blood** to avoid it dripping on something he couldn't wash off."

Truth Bullet Fired: Leaking Shower Head

"I BELIEVE YOU!"

 **Consent!**

"Melinda is right, for once. In order to hide the fact the killer was hurt during the murder they needed to wash the wound of blood so it wouldn't bleed out very badly." I consented with Melinda of all people.

"Aww. You agreed with me? Why that's so sweet, Kai." Melinda cooed.

"Don't take that as me wanting to agree with you. I only am because it will prove Luca's innocent." I told her.

"Huh?" Luca looked surprised.

"The only place close enough to wash off the blood would be the showers in the locker rooms. When I investigated the girl's locker room I found a leaking shower head. It was leaking because it wasn't turned off."

"Luca could have used the shower in the boy's locker room!" Brenda tried to rebuttal.

"Then why did I find blood in the _girl's_ locker room?" I questioned her. "The locker rooms will only allow people of their gender to enter their side of the locker rooms. If it was Luca then that blood I found in the girl's locker room shouldn't have been there. Which means the one who killed Sienna was a girl."

"Which means Luca is not the killer. Unless he's a girl in boy's clothing." Shana chuckled.

"I'm definitely a guy." Luca laughed before he looked to me and quickly looked away. His eyes appeared to be shameful.

"Then that narrows our suspects down to three." Paul said as we all looked over Shana, Brenda, and Mikayla.

Tommy said. "But we can narrow it further. Let's do what Paul suggested earlier. Let's have them show the EpiPens! If they have it with them, then they can't be the culprit. If they don't however, then they are the culprit."

"As long as two of them show theirs then we have our killer." Damian said happily.

"Well then ladies, produce your syringes." Paul ordered them.

At first no one made a move. That was until Mikayla opened her scrub jacket and reached inside the inner pocket to dispense an intact syringe. "There."

"Then this does clear Mikayla of suspicion. If she had asked the others for a new one then they would have been suspicious as to why she would." Paul clarified.

"But she might have gotten one from the nurse's office." Brenda suggested.

Luca shook his head. "Nope. Not possible. There were no spares in there. I didn't see any when I was searching for the first aid kit."

"And since we cleared Luca of suspicion then we have no reason to doubt him." I added.

Soon Monokuma chimed in. "I will also attest to this. If there is anything that could be used as a murder weapon the only places would be the kitchen where all the utensils are stored or the school store. No other room has any killing items that I know of."

"So Brenda, how about it? Where's your syringe?" Tommy asked, trying to corner the blonde girl.

"I don't have mine on me. It's back in my room. I don't have pockets big enough to hold something that long." Brenda told us.

"Heehee. That's what she said." Marcel giggled like an immature child.

"SHUT IT!" Brenda shouted.

"Then there we have it! Brenda's guilty!" Tommy cheered.

"Not yet. Dirty tomboy there hasn't shown us hers either." Melinda pointed her out.

"Oh right. Go on Shana. Show them your EpiPen." Tommy told her with a confident grin.

"..." Shana glared at Tommy.

"Uh... Shana? Why aren't you doing anything?" Tommy asked with a bead of sweat running down his forehead.

"Because I can't show mine. Mine is in my room! YOU JUST THREW ME UNDER THE BUS YOU ASSHOLE!" Shana shrieked at him, leaning over the podium and into his terrified face as she did.

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't know you didn't have yours!" Tommy shrunk as he tried to recoil back away from her.

I swear I saw her braided pigtails turn into snakes as they hissed at Tommy like Medusa. "I SWEAR TO GOD IF I DIE BECAUSE OF YOU I WILL ENSURE YOU BURN IN HELL WITH ME AS YOUR ETERNAL NIGHTMARE!" Shana screeched like a banshee which made Tommy let out a horrible scream of terror.

"Then what do we do? Do we just go 50/50?" Willie asked confused.

"No we need to be sure on our vote. Even with only two suspects we have a great chance of getting it wrong if enough people don't vote for the blackened." Luca commented.

My eyes were closed when I spoke up. "We don't have to decide. I already know now that Brenda is the culprit."

She looked over at him. "Why Kai? Why are you still insisting it was me? Was the time we spent together a lie?"

"No of course not! Just please confess! It hurts me to condemn you like this! Please make this easier on me and turn yourself in."

Her eyes were shadowed out as she trembled lightly. "Turn... myself... in?" Brenda asked quietly as a tear streaked down her freckled cheek. Her head suddenly lifted up as her dark expression returned but with teary eyes. "LIKE FUCKING HELL I'M GONNA DIE FOR KILLING SIENNA! I WON'T LET YOU DO THIS, KAI! I WON'T ALLOW YOU TO CHOOSE THE WRONG PERSON!"

The entire courtroom fell silent as the only ones fighting now were me and Brenda, just like when it was me and Evelyn.

 **Argument Armament!**

"You're going to get everyone killed if you choose the wrong person!"

"I won't choose wrong."

"It's Shana! It has to be her!"

"It isn't."

"You can't prove that!" She shouted getting right next to my podium and in my face as I got right back in her face.

"I can!"

"There's no way!"

"Yes there is! It's where the culprit most likely got hurt that gives it away!"

"You can't prove that I have a wound! Unless you strip me, you nasty pervert. But you'd have to do the same with Shana since she is also a suspect!"

"No I don't! The wound would have to be right in plain sight!"

"It can't be! You said they had to cover it up with bandages! **I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING THAT WOULD COVER A WOUND OR BANDAGES!** "

Final Blow: Big, Puffy Girl Bracelet

"THIS IS MY ANSWER!"

 **Break!**

I soon opened my eyes and calmly looked into her rage-filled ones and asked in a soft voice. "Brenda, when and where did you get that bracelet?"

Brenda's eyes trembled as she trembled. I heard the wood of her podium creak from how tightly she gripped it. "I... I-I've always had this. I wear this everyday. It from my collection of big and puffy girl bracelets."

"No you don't. Everyone knows you only have one collection on you at all times. That's you pin collection on your vest. You keep all of your other collections at home in your collector's shack. Besides that bracelet was found in the vending machine at the school store. Willie can testify to that since he has the inventory list. Everything, including that bracelet was not in the school store until the time the second motive was revealed which was before Sienna died. When we Mikayla asked each of us to take an EpiPen from her, you didn't have a bracelet on. But you did this morning when we met up."

"I also happened to notice you were lightly pulling at that bracelet from the time we found Sienna's body and throughout this entire class trial. I just thought it was something you naturally did when you were scared of nervous but I bet it's because of how tight it is that's been bothering the wound on your right wrist. After all if you injected her with your left hand and kept her pinned with the right, I assume she'd use both hands to try and free herself. Since we already know you were facing each other and her left hand had dead skin under her nails, then that would mean her left hand would only reach two places of note. Your face to try and push you away but since you face isn't cut we can assume it was the only other place her hand would've grabbed at; your right arm." I deduced right in her face.

Brenda trembled more as she kept a straight of a face but I could see in her eyes that she had already broken. I... had broken her.

"Brenda, I will go over the case from the very beginning. I will make you confess who you are and what you did to our friend." I told her as we continued staring into each other's eyes.

 **Closing Argument!**

Act 1

"Everything began with once again the motive being displayed. Monokuma had me choose the motive with a luck-of-the-draw and the one I chose was money. Everyone was convinced that no one was in anyway swayed by the motive I helped choose. But the culprit began their string of lies by making us believe in that false hope. Soon after there was a dispute between us and Paul exposed a lot about Sienna I think most of us would rather forget. But Sienna was fueled to try and become stronger so no one would protect her. But then Paul exposed more by telling everyone about Sienna's deadly allergy to soy. The culprit at this point now knew exactly who their target was gonna be and how they would do it. They'd use Sienna's allergy and weak body to their advantage."

Act 2

"However the culprit was trying to think of a way to implicate soy in to murder her. Little did anyone know that the answer would be unknowingly given to them by Mikayla. She pulled me and four other people to the side; one of which was the culprit. She begged for us to help ensure Sienna stays safe. With her allergy exposed to everyone, Mikayla felt that made her a greater target. So she entrusted us and gave one EpiPen to each of us because she believed we all would do everything we could to protect Sienna. Little did Mikayla know that she gave the killer exactly what they needed to now proceed with their plan and take advantage of Mikayla's trust as well as Sienna herself. We all soon departed together back to retire to our dorms for the night a little before nighttime but four of us entered our rooms, the culprit most likely did not."

Act 3

"The culprit most likely doubled back to the cafeteria but noticed Marcel eating just before nighttime. He soon left and made his way to his dorm. The culprit hid out of sight so they wouldn't be caught. Once the coast was clear they rushed to the kitchen to snag a bottle of soy. However the nighttime announcement played that signaled the start of nighttime. The culprit had no time to get the soy in their EpiPen and put the bottle back before Monokuma discovered they would violate a rule. The culprit couldn't take the risk as they probably rushed out when that announcement played to avoid punishment. They then went back to their dorm most likely to begin the switching of the EpiPen's contents of the medicine that counters soy sauce with soy sauce itself. They soon began making their way to the place where Sienna could be found at the time; up in the fitness room on the second floor. But they made a slight detour to the library and hid the soy bottle on the teacher's desk since they knew they wouldn't be able to sneak it in since it was off limits by morning and everyone who did go to breakfast might catch them."

Act 4

At this point the culprit was now outside the only exit to the fitness room where Sienna was still working out. I'd imagine working out in the jacket was pretty hot so Sienna probably took off her jacket before the culprit arrived. Soon the unsuspecting target unlocked the door and began making her way out to go back to bed. However that decision would prove to be fatal. The killer found their opportunity and struck! They stabbed the EpiPen into Sienna's neck as the content of the EpiPen, the soy sauce, began seeping into her system. Sienna probably tried running off for help but was pinned either against the wall or the ground to keep her in place. One hand held the EpiPen in place as the free hand of the culprit took hold of her neck and began squeezing, probably in another attempt to ensure Sienna couldn't cry out for help either. Soon the soy began taking its toll as her face and neck began swelling from the allergic reaction she was having. Sienna tried to free herself but with her being the weakest person here and add the fact the soy was killing her, she never stood a chance of escaping. But the pain must have been intense enough that the culprit suffered a flesh wound when Sienna's nails dug into their skin, causing them to bleed. It might also be the case that caused the EpiPen to crack but by that point it was too late for Sienna. As she had now died most likely from the soy that poisoned her."

Act 5

With the victim dead the killer need to take action to hide their crime. They first needed to hide important evidence. The first thing the did was take the hand towel Sienna most likely used during her training to act as a temporary bandage to ensure their blood didn't get anywhere. They most likely rotated it since the towel was small and to make sure not too much blood soaked in on area and would leak through. The killer then took their damaged EpiPen, destroyed it fully, and spread most of the pieces in the garbage can in the fitness room, taking more vital pieces like the needle and cap so that we wouldn't clue in the shards were someone's EpiPen. They dragged Sienna's body to the gym since it was close by to the fitness room and approached the girl's locker room. This would only have happened if the killer was a girl. Once inside they made two vital errors while in there. The hand towel probably was completely soaked in blood as a drop fell unnoticed near the drain. The second happened after the killer used the shower to wash off the excessive blood from their wound. The killer turned off the shower but not enough to shut it all the way off as it leaked. If that hadn't happened I would have missed both very important clues. The culprit then took the body to the pool area and beat her face to cause bruising to make us think she'd been brutally choked and beaten to death. Then to top it off they threw her body into the pool. This was done as another cover up for how she died and to cause the body to shrivel up with how long it was in the pool for as a way to destroy evidence. The killer then used the leather strap from the school store and used it on the pool railing to fray it out and to direct us to it being the murder weapon. But the culprit was in such a rush they didn't erase the mark that was left. They had to get their injury tended to and went to the Nurse's office to use the unused first aid kit. But skin-colored bandages could only hide so much. They needed something else. Back at the school store they grabbed an item that would surely cover their bandages. That was the big, puffy bracelet in the vending machine. The killer had one last thing to do as they walked back to the dorm hallway but not before Ollie briefly spotted them passing the rec room. With Sienna's jacket, the frayed strap, and the now dried, bloody towel in hand, the killer used Sienna's door key, that they took from Sienna's body, to gain access to her room. There they threw the towel in the trash and placed the strap in the jacket and set it on the bed. With the last of the evidence now locked away, they returned to their room with a sigh of relief, thinking their plan went perfectly."

"But due to the errors the killer made throughout their crime they failed to hide everything. Thought the bracelet was a nice touch. No one thought about it being suspicious when the culprit wearing it could write it off as being part of a new collection they were starting."

"That's everything you've done! Well? Tell me I'm wrong Brenda Bates, the Ultimate Collector!"

 **Break!**

"Well Brenda? What do you have to say for yourself?" I asked her calmly.

By this point Brenda's mask shattered as she fell forward and began sobbing uncontrollably.

"WAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAAA!" Brenda cried out as tears, spit, and snot was seen leaking out of her.

"So it is true. Brenda did it." Shana whimpered into her hand that covered her mouth as tears escaped her eyes and stained her dirty cheeks.

"Then we are finally done. About damn time." Paul grumbled in annoyance.

Melinda looked away like she was upset. "Monokuma."

"No need to tell me twice! I can see you're all done talking. Now the time has come for the blackened and the spotless to face off! It's Voting Time!" Monokuma cheered.

My handbook screen suddenly changed as a voting ballot appeared. The four dead friends were grayed and crossed out like the pictures in their seats with the remaining twelve very visible. I soon saw Brenda's face as I pressed her. The timer stopped at 24 seconds for me as I waited for everyone to finish casting their vote. The screen soon went black.

"Now then let's see the results!" Monokuma called out as a giant monitor descended down above him. When it turned on the caption "Voting Results" appeared before a tally score for everyone appeared. However we'd see eleven tallies appear under Brenda's name and one under mine. Soon a picture of Brenda appeared as confetti fell around her picture and a bell rung, signaling that she was selected as the blackened.

"The blackened has been selected by majority vote. Did you make the right choice or the dreadfully wrong one? Let the unveiling of the blackened commence!" Monokuma gleefully called out as the lights went out. The next thing we saw was the Monokuma Vote machine light up in front of us as a drum roll sounded, the Monokuma dressed in a Statue of Liberty attire began flashing, and the lottery ball cage began spinning as we heard plastic balls being thrown around inside. Soon it stopped as a bright yellow ball fell out onto the metal rail underneath and slowly rolled down the track, stopping at the end to reveal a pixelated face of Brenda on the ball. Just like last time, the bottom of the machine popped open as a Monokuma holding American flags in each hand began waving them and coins with his face spilled out on the ground. This was no victory however. No one cheered as that was confirmation that the blackened we selected was indeed correct.

* * *

 _Holy shit! I spent the entire day writing this! I can't believe I wrote nearly 10,000 words for this chapter alone. Damn my head hurts. XD Anyways it's done Brenda is the blackened. Did anyone see that coming or did it shock you? I wanna know! Why do you think she did it? Let me know. Do you think Monokuma is kinky in bed? I... actually don't wanna know. Anyways leave thoughts and comments down below and I always love constructive criticism so feel free to tell me what I can improve on. But until next time I'll see you later! Puhuhuhuhu~_


	16. Chapter 2: End

Monokuma suddenly popped up! "Wow! Two for two! You kids sure are lucky! Yes indeed you got it right again for the second time in a row! The blackened who killed Sienna Donnelly, the Ultimate Figure Skater, was none other than Brenda Bates!" He roared out happily.

But no one else erupted in cheers like that monster. Everyone's attention was solely focused on Brenda as she shamefully averted making eye contact with any of us.

"So then it's really true? Brenda... killed poor Sienna?" Willie asked quietly, trying to make full sense of this which wasn't surprising. I still couldn't believe it.

'Someone as bubbly and happy-go-lucky as her... resorted to murder? How can that be?' I tried to make sense of this in my head but it was all too bizarre for me to comprehend.

Soon Brenda, defeated, slowly removed the giant, pink bracelet from her wrist and revealed the bandage that was in fact hidden underneath. The bracelet lightly fell from her loosely open hand as Mikayla looked to her. "So you're the one who took advantage of us. And I helped you kill her. I helped you murder Sienna."

"Mikayla..." Luca tried to calm her but she shot her head at him.

"NO! Don't try to make this better! Nothing you say will make this better!" Mikayla then looked back to Brenda. "I trusted you... I believed you would help me protect Sienna with the others and you took advantage of us! If I didn't give you that EpiPen then Sienna would still be here! To think I gave the killer the murder weapon will haunt me forever! So why?! WHY!?"

Brenda didn't respond. I stepped up, cupped her chin, and made her look at me. "Was it the motive I chose?"

Brenda's eyes darted to the side as my heart shattered. I continued talking. "It was. Y-You said that no one would kill for that money. You promised we all would make it out together but that was all part of your act, wasn't it?"

After another silent exchange she finally spoke. "Yeah, it was. My only goal was to get you to let your guards down and make you all believe I was also a victim in this. I... I planned everything out. From giving you false confidence with my shitty inspirational speech and cheesy punchline to planning on how I'd get you all to discover Sienna's body."

Marcel looked at her confused. "But how would discovering the body convince us you were a victim?"

Paul looked to Monokuma. "Hey! Explain to us how the body discovery announcement works!"

Monokuma looked surprised. "What isn't it obvious? Then again I don't recall explaining how it does work to all of you, so better late than never! When three or more people discover a body for the first time that is when the announcement is played!"

"Wait you said all of us... did you already explain this rule to someone?" Damian asked warily.

"It was me. I... asked Monokuma last night when I separated from the others." Brenda admitted.

Melinda huffed. "Figures. You took advantage of the announcement to make you seem like you were innocent. By having three people alongside you when you directed them to the body that announcement would play when they found it, ensuring they'd believe it played since you all found it."

"That's not all. You chose three people in particular to help sell that. Mikayla since she was closest to Sienna, myself because of the motive, and Marcel because..." I trailed off. I knew he was too stupid for his own good but I didn't want to say it.

That didn't stop Mikayla however. "Because he's a brainless moron that should have died! Not her!"

"W-What?" The color seeped from Marcel's face as he stuttered a bit at her.

"Was that money truly too enticing for you? Are you so greedy that you'd kill for money?" Mikayla asked her as her fists shook.

Melinda sighed in disappointment at Mikayla. "Well she is the Ultimate Collector. She lives off making random and dumb collections out of anything else in the world. Collectors need to collect and how do they do so? By buying shit off eBay and Amazon. How to do that? Have money. One million dollars would definitely benefit a collector to successfully win any bet and complete any collection with ease."

"You're right about that." Brenda agreed with Melinda. "I am greedy. I'm so selfish and picky about my collections that I strive to make them perfect. In most cases I would take what was necessary to make sure my collections are completed. But that wasn't my intent! I wasn't going to use that money to buy shit! I wanted it to repay my financial debt!"

My eyes widened in shock. "Your debt?"

Brenda slowly nodded. "The debt I am in with my family. I did have a part-time job at my local movie theatre, shelling popcorn and cotton candy to people just so I could make money to spend on my collections. But soon my expectations rose too high for my own good and I bought things I couldn't afford. I had to resort asking for help. My parents were skeptical at first but I promised them I would pay them back. Soon I was caught in a loop. Buying too expensive items, begging for money with a promise to repay my family that would never be fulfilled, and then it would rinse and repeat. Over and over and over. I was addicted. It was so bad I even stole money from my parent's wallets or from my siblings' allowances without their knowing when they refused me. But somehow they kept track of all the money I owed them and I would never get them paid back with the shit job I had. Then one day my dad approached me and told me I had to get them paid back somehow and it needed to happen fast. I tried to promise him I would avoid buying anything and give him every paycheck I received until my debt was paid but he wasn't convinced. Despite their initial support in my hobby by building me my collection hut they soon felt it was a mistake. So he gave me two options. I had to either pay them back by the end of the year which working that one job would never do or they would take as much out of my collections and sell them to get them their money back. I couldn't let that happen so I worked my ass off as soon as I got out of school and begged to stay as late as I could at work. I lost my weekends to work off my debt but it wouldn't be enough."

"But then I had a breakthrough. Despite the fact my collections were hanging by a thin thread, people still loved to come and see them. I was even charging an entrance fee by that point as my family overlooked that since I was always working. Then a few months ago one man entered hearing all the commotion about some girl's outstanding collections and he asked my dad about the collections and who was the one behind them. He explained to the man about my addiction and how him allowing me to continue on it has put me under major financial debt with my entire family. I came home late that night to find the Japanese man sitting in my living room with my family as they were waiting for me. It was soon explained that he was a scouter for the new Hope's Peak being built in Los Angeles. He said that there was so much potential for an inspiring, dedicated, young collector as myself and invited me to attend Hope's Peak for the next school year. My family was weary about it thinking that it would make things worse for me but he told them that all we need to do is focus on developing our talents and we could graduate. He even said that the Ultimate Collector would learn how to bid, budget, and be smarter about buying things. When I heard that I begged them to let me go. I pleaded and promised I would work hard to learn how to be a true collector who's smart about their money and would get them paid back after I graduate. After discussing it far into the night, my parents agreed this would be my final chance since I did give up so much free time to try and work off a debt that would never be paid by their original due date."

"Oh Brenda..." Tommy whispered sadly with his hands over his chest, looking heart-felt.

Brenda began trembling. "I thought I'd finally have a chance to truly perfect my talent so that I could be smarter about collecting and repay my debt to my family. But then... I found myself trapped in the school and in a killing game! All that preparation and working I was gonna do during my time here was blown out the window when our lives were put on the line! I knew that if I did manage to survive that I would be right back where I started but my parents would likely sell everything I spent my entire life building just to get their money back! I knew I'd lost as soon as I stepped into this hellhole! But then Kai was ordered to choose a motive and what he chose was perfect. It was my one chance to ensure my family got their money and my collections would be safe. I just had to take it! I couldn't afford someone else taking advantage of the motive first so I struck! And I chose to kill Sienna because she was the weakest person here! She was the only one I knew I would be able to kill when it came down to it. Marcel is dumb but he's still strong enough to over power me." By this point she was in tears again.

Marcel sighed. "Well at least someone had something nice to say about me."

"But I underestimated her strength however. She had drive to live and the adrenaline she must have felt was strong enough for her to hurt me when I struck her with the EpiPen. And... she knew of my killing intent when I approached her." Brenda suddenly told us.

Mikayla looked most jarred by that. "S-She knew?"

Monokuma began laughing manically. "BWAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHA! That sounds like my cue! I am very happy to present another thrilling installment of "The Victim's Final Moments"! Watch this!"

The big monitor that had displayed the voting time tally appeared as security footage began playing like before when Jayden had killed himself from Evelyn's hypnotic suggestion. However this time Brenda was seen casually waiting outside the door of the fitness room and on the side where the door opens up. If she wanted to ambush Sienna, she'd be on the other side so that the door would block her from Sienna's sight and up against the wall as extra precaution to ensure she wouldn't be spotted. Soon the fitness door opened as Sienna walked out wiping her forehead with the hand towel I found in her trash can. I also noticed her jacket was slung over her shoulder as she walked out and jumped a little when she quickly noticed Brenda there.

 _"Gah! Oh. B-Brenda, don't scare me like that."_ Sienna breathed out holding her free hand to her chest.

Brenda chuckled lightly. _"Sorry Sienna. I didn't mean to. I was just asked by Mikayla to watch out for you."_

Sienna looked at her with a confused look in her eyes. Her voice emanated that same confusion. _"T-This late?"_

 _"Well yeah. She's worried that something will happen after what transpired down in the cafeteria so she wanted to make sure you'd be okay. I'd be more than happy to escort you get back to your room if you'd like. Come on."_ Brenda smiled her usual bubbly smile but knowing that was just her mask was hard to look at but I kept watching.

Sienna looked down, not moving as I noticed her hand tightly grip her hand towel. Brenda noticed Sienna hadn't moved when her head looked back. _"Sienna? Are you alright?"_

 _"Y-You're lying."_ Sienna suddenly called her out.

Brenda looked stunned. _"What? Sienna, why would you say that?"_

When Sienna's head raised up her eyes glared at Brenda accusingly which instantly made Brenda's smile deteriorate. _"If Big Sis Kayla was worried she'd be here to watch out for me, not you. Or at least she'd be with you. You being here by yourself proves what you said was a lie."_

Silence between the two would probably confirm her suspicion as she continued. _"Y-You're here to kill me... aren't you?"_

 _"..."  
_

 _"I knew it..."_ She whispered before she shook and began screaming. _"I-_ _I knew it!"_

 _"Sienna! Please let me explain!"_ Brenda begged but Sienna threw her jacket and towel at her.

 _"No! I don't want to hear it! I don't want you to tell me why! I know wh-why! It's because I'm weak! You want to take advantage of me because I haven't been able to defend myself. I always rely on others when things get too tough for me. Mommy has, Kayla has, even Daniel has tried to protect me!"_

"Daniel?" I whispered to myself before my mind flashed back to the picture. 'That boy in her photo must be this Daniel she mentioned.' I was quickly pulled out of my thoughts as Sienna continued yelling.

 _"But I am thr-through being the weakling everyone think they can push around! You w-wanna kill me? F-Fine! Then you're gonna have to f-fight for it!"_ Before I realized it I saw Sienna lunge herself far from where she stood in one bound, directly at the equally surprised Ultimate Collector.

I didn't think Sienna would be able to make such a leap until I recalled she was the Ultimate Figure Skater. You'd need impressive muscle power in your legs to pull off the balance, leaps, jumps, and tricks to perform. Thinking about it like that and it wasn't a shocker how she'd pull that off. I soon realized that I was missing what was happening as I saw Brenda struggle to pry Sienna off her as Sienna held her wrists and began pushing on her. Brenda seemed to actually have a hard time getting her off but soon enough Sienna's weak arms gave out before Brenda's could. She took her chance and shoved Sienna away against the wall. She reached into the back pocket of her shorts and charged ahead. Sienna stood up to recover but was firmly pinned against the wall as Brenda slammed the EpiPen into Sienna's neck, causing the small girl to scream out in pain. Brenda quickly injected the soy into Sienna's body as she saw what Brenda had and it left her looking completely shocked thst she had one of her EpiPens. She grabbed it and tried pulling it out but Brenda pushed back and soon a small crack resonated, confirming it did crack from the pressure both had applied on the EpiPen. Then it became rather clear to her what was happening when she made light gasping sounds as we could see her face begin to swell up like a balloon. She tried to attempt a scream but Brenda threw the EpiPen to the side and then took hold of Sienna's throat and squeezed her air pipe shut. Sienna choked not only on the soy sauce but by Brenda's hands at the same time. Sienna gripped tightly onto Brenda's right wrist, desperately trying to peel it off as her upper body continued to swell. We soon heard Brenda stifle a painful cry as blood was drawn from her wrist by Sienna's nails which was the injury the killer had suffered like I deducted.

After a small moment of struggling, Sienna's movements grew smaller and weaker as her attempts to escape faded with her life. Suddenly a teary-eyed Brenda leaned forward and began whispering in her ear. The camera suddenly zoomed in which I guess turned up the volume because we heard her whisper like it was spoken clear as day in our faces. _"Shh. It's gonna be alright Sienna. You'll soon be reunited. I promise. Please don't fight it. Rest now and be with her."_

'W-What did she say?' I wondered as Sienna's body went completely limp as Brenda released her throat and her body fell like a ragdoll with a thud to the ground. The screen went blank as we all felt like we watched something unbelievable, which we had! That was...

"Unbelievable." Shana trembled her face filled with despair. "Did that really happen? Sienna attacked Brenda first and Brenda said that to her as she was dying?"

"That can't be true! There's... no way. There's no way I'd believe a video that monster shows us!" Mikayla shouted as her eyes spilled out its contents over her cheeks and down to the floor.

Monokuma giggled. "Puhuhuhu~ But it is true! You don't need me to tell you that though. Why don't you ask one of the stars of that segment?"

We all looked back to Brenda who simply responded with, "It is true. Sienna tried to defend herself by attacking me first and I said that to her. I only said that because she didn't give me a chance to explain it to her. I wanted to explain myself but she never gave me the chance!"

"Why would she give you a chance to explain why you were gonna kill her? I'm a person who believes that dreams are our most powerful tools for inspiration. I've dreamed about helping all animals in the world and making sure we all survive this fucking game. Sienna had too many dreams that she wanted to come true as well. She wanted to become an Olympic champion that her father could be proud of, she wanted to have her father love her, and during our time together she wanted to get out and find her mom! Of course she wouldn't listen to you! She fought for something important! That's why she ignored you! YOU CAN'T EXPLAIN TO HER ANYMORE SO EXPLAIN IT TO US DAMMIT!" Mikayla demanded of her.

"IT'S BECAUSE I WAS SHOWN HER MOTIVE VIDEO!" Brenda shouted out in tears. She held herself as she was sobbing uncontrollably.

I felt my blood turn ice cold at that. There was only one thing she could be talking about. "Are you referring to the first motive given to us?"

"The same type video that pushed Evelyn so far to kill Helen and Jayden? You saw the same video Sienna got and her video pushed you to kill her more than your own?" Ollie asked confused more than shocked.

Mikayla's eyes widened as she very slowly shook her head in absolute denial at that bombshell. "No. That's not possible. Sienna... wouldn't share her motive video. I was the closest person with her and even she couldn't share it with me! There's no way you saw her motive video!"

"But I did! Monokuma was the one who left it inside my room on the other side of the door last night." Brenda told us.

When Monokuma heard his name he perked up like he was now paying attention. "Wazzat?"

"D-Don't play dumb! I had my dorm room locked all day the motive was presented! No one could have gotten that disc to me besides you!" Brenda shouted at the bear.

"Wait when did you see Sienna's motive video? I don't recall that happening." Monokuma replied thoughtfully with his head tilted curiously to the side.

"STOP LYING!" Brenda yelled at him.

Monokuma's face grew red with anger as he threw his arms up. "How many times must I say this? Bears do not lie! Humans lie! I will say this once and once only! It was not me who gave you her video!"

"Then how in the hell did her video end up in my room?" Brenda growled.

Monokuma suddenly was calm again as he shrugged. "I dunno but since you obviously know about its contents then might as well share it with you all! After all its original recipient is no longer here to be motivated by it so there's no harm."

The monitor soon lit up again as a familiar tune began playing. It was the same as when I had watched my motive video. I tried to prepare myself for the worse but no amount of preparation would _ever_ have me ready for what I was about to witness.

The first thing that appeared was a video of a very young child trying to balance in ice skates on a big sheet of ice. The small girl was no older than 4 or 5 years old and with the way she wore her hair in pigtails, I knew immediately it was Sienna when she was a child. The cameraman, or should I say camerawoman, was laughing and encouraging the child Sienna to keep her balance, which she did despite it looking like she would fall any second. That could be no one else but Sienna's mom who recorded that video.

Soon Monokuma's devilish voice overpowered the audio enough where it was still able to be heard but Monokuma would be what was intended to be heard. _"Sienna Donnelly, the Ultimate Figure Skater. A prodigy student on the ice when her mommy was around but when she saw others, she'd quickly succumb to shyness and fear."_ As Monokuma was speaking the camera shifted up to a boy the same age with scruffy brown hair and holding a hockey stick, watching Sienna intently from the other side of where they were and when Sienna noticed him she immediately fell back and began crying in pain. Her mom put the camera down and we saw her gently kneel down hug Sienna close to her, trying to help her stop crying. _"A loving mother who was always there for her and the boy who would come to consider himself her friend. These two are important people in her life. But this video is about the **most** important person in your life so I gotta show one of them."_

The camera soon changed as it was suddenly at a hotel room. It looked like the camera was hidden in the room as I saw a woman with her face purposefully altered so we couldn't see it, sitting on the edge of the bed. But since this was Sienna's video of the most important person I knew that had to be Sienna's mom. She looked like she was nervous or cold with the way her hands were rubbing over each other. _"Sienna's mommy is the most important person in her life and what happened to her after she dropped her precious daughter off at the academy?"_

Suddenly a door smashed open and her mom jumped in fear. _"CONNIE!"_ A man's voice resonated before a man was seen storming into the room and into the camera's view which had mainly the bed. Connie trembled as the man approached her.

 _"J-Jim! How did you..."_ Before she could ask, the man named Jim slapped her so hard she was knocked onto the bed. She immediately began crying as he looked to her. I could tell because of his movements since his face was also altered.

 _"You fucking bitch! I didn't give you permission to leave! And where the fuck is that little abortion?"_ Jim screamed directly in her ear.

Connie cowered but answered him immediately. _"S-Sienna is at school. Hope's Peak is having her attend as the Ultimate Figure Skater. I-I was only staying here for a while to ensure she'd be able to go there without complications once I left back to Deerbourne."_

 _"Don't lie you fucking cunt! That sack of shit has a title that only I should have? BULLSHIT!"_ He hit her in the back of the head.

 _"I-I'm not lying! I swear! She's at her school right now! H-How'd you know I was even here?"_ She asked him.

 _"I'M THE ONE ASKING QUESTIONS! NOT YOU! But once I saw you left I was tipped off about where you left to and where you were staying! You were trying to run away weren't you?"_ He growled lowly.

 _"N-No! Like I said SiennaAHHHH!"_ Connie was explaining before her head was yanked back by her hair and her body was pressed down by Jim's other hand.

 _"I SAID DO NOT LIE TO ME!"_ Jim screamed.

 _"I-I-I'M N-NOT!"_ Connie cried out in anguish as she was punched again.

 _"AND STOP SAYING THAT NAME! I DON'T WANT TO HER THAT ABOMINATION'S NAME EVER AGAIN EVEN IF IT'S SOMEONE ELSE WITH THE SAME GODDAMN NAME! AND NOW YOU WILL PAY FOR RUNNING AWAY AND TREACHERY!"_

Before anyone could register what happened the scene changed again but it had simply cut out to a part further ahead. What I saw made me cover my mouth as I suddenly felt the urge to vomit. Before us was a rape scene with black censor bars over Connie's breasts and another over their connected privates as he forced himself into her quivering, bruised, and bloodied body. Connie cried and cried as her husband raped her, forcing himself in her with blood all over her crotch and throwing random hits on her at random times and places so she could never prepare herself.

 _"This is what you get for trying to run from me, you bitch."_ Jim groaned as he thrusted roughly into her. _"I'm gonna breed you, whore. And once you're filled up I'll make sure you get the demon inside you aborted. I'll do this to you over and over. Hell I might even do this to that abortion and make her experience the pain you're experiencing."_

That made my whole body go numb in absolute horror and disgust. I soon heard coughing and looked away to see Mikayla had fallen to her knees and was vomiting all over the floor in front of her. This made me look around to see the other disgusted, angered, and horror-filled expressions the others wore. But of course both Paul and Melinda just watched with blank expressions. I wanted to hurt them for being so calm at such a hideous scene but something Jim said drew me back as I heard him scream out as he was obviously finishing inside of her.

 _"Or I could give her this pain... and make sure she never has you to protect her from it."_ He roughly pulled out of her with two censor bars over their now separate privates as he walked out of the camera's view, leaving us with only the badly beaten and bloody Connie lying on the bed too weak to attempt to move. That's when we saw the naked, abusive husband return with a metal bat in hand. He lifted it up then slammed it down on her leg. We heard bone crack as she screamed in agony.

I couldn't take it anymore as I covered my ears but it did nothing to silence the video as I heard another swing, another bone break, and another cry resonate deep in my eardrums and head. My eye peeked open to see him raise the bat directly over her head. I could barely hear her beg him and plead him before she screamed out as the bat flew down. Just before it connected and my eyes could close again the video went blank as Monokuma popped up in the black background. _"What has become of Mommy? What has become of the most important person in your life? Wanna find out?"_ Monokuma vanished as those same words appeared on the screen as mine did. YOU WILL FIND THE ANSWER OUTSIDE!

My body was in absolute shock just as Sienna's body went into shock from the soy sauce. And NO! That was not a metaphor, not a visual play on words, or a silly over-exaggeration like a theatre performance. My body was shaking so violently I had to hold onto the closest thing I could find otherwise I would have fallen over. When I felt something I latched onto it and felt it hold me tightly too. I looked up to see it was Luca and he was trembling just as bad but somehow able to maintain enough balance to hold me as well as himself up.

Mikayla however had nothing as she tried to stand back up only to fall forward into her own vomit. She pushed herself up to her hands and knees, covered in snot, tears, and vomit juice as she tried to comprehend what she was forced to watch, bawling and wailing and heaving sporadically.

"There. Now you know why I truly chose Sienna as my target. The only person she truly loved is dead. If she left this school all she would have to go back to was that promise her sick father made to her. If she got out all that would be there was despair. So I chose to take the burden of killing her so she could avoid such a terrible fate. I don't care if you judge me or hate me for taking her life. I already hate myself! I hate how I keep taking away because of what my talent had made me and now I took the most important thing away! The life of a sweet, innocent, and way more talented girl than I ever could be! But she had no chance of survival in here or out there so I wanted her to die as peacefully as possible and by a friend and not by someone like them!" She screamed with tears streaming down her face as she pointed to Paul and Melinda, who both made no comment or reaction to Brenda's statement.

After taking in what she said I soon felt the feeling come back to my legs as I motioned to Luca I was able to stand on my own. He nodded as he then rushed to Mikayla's side and went to help her up. As I saw Luca help get her to her feet and held her up, I looked over to Brenda. "You truly felt like you had Sienna's best intentions at heart. I understand that... but that doesn't mean what you did was the only option."

Brenda looked a bit stunned. "H-Huh?"

"That video of her's showed what happened to the _most_ important person in her life. But it did briefly mention about a boy who considered himself her friend. That friend was Daniel when she mentioned him during your confrontation and that was the same boy with the hockey stick we saw in her home video as well as the picture I saw in her room that had the same boy but much older than in the video. Did you consider that maybe he might be out there to help Sienna from her father? And what about us? We all would be there to protect her! We would have all been there not just for her but for each other! Did you think that maybe if you asked me _I_ would have helped you get the money you'd need to repay your debt since your plans for the school got ruined?!" I shouted at her with tears flowing as swiftly as hers as we never broke eye contact.

Brenda remained silent as she looked down. "...No. I didn't. And because of my naivety Sienna is dead and I... I..."

"And now you'll pay the price with your life!" Monokuma finished for her.

Brenda blinked. "What?"

"Don't tell me you forgot? That would make me beary unhappy. But I'll get over it once your punishment is complete!" Monokuma cheered.

"No. Not again! Please not this again!" Shana begged.

"Too bad! Now's the time and there's nothing you can do to stop it." Monokuma snickered.

Brenda shook her head. "No. No one will stop it. I'll go through with it and pay for my crime. I can't undo the past and force myself to realize my errors so I will accept my fate and pray that Sienna will be able to forgive me as I burn in hell."

"Brenda..." I whimpered as I saw her shuffle a bit before she held out her pin vest to me.

"Here Kai. Take this back home with you. I'll want all my collections to be together one last time before my family sells them." She smiled sadly as she dropped it into my open hands.

I gripped it tightly, feeling the pins and buttons dig painfully into my skin but I didn't care. "Brenda, I will do more than just get this back with your other collections. I'll not only get them back to your family, I _will_ repay your debt for you and buy your collections if I need to so they can be preserved forever in memory of you! I give you my word!"

Brenda looked at me in utter disbelief before a sad smile appeared. "Oh Kai... I... I knew you were my favorite actor for a reason."

"Now then I've prepared a very special punishment for Brenda Bates, the Ultimate Collector!" Monokuma hollered out, holding onto his round belly.

"Thank you Kai. And I'm sorry everyone. I'm sorry... Mikayla. I don't expect you to forgive me so... Goodbye." Brenda sniffled.

"Let's give it everything we got! IIIIt's PUNISHMENT TIIIIIIIIME!" Monokuma now squealed as the red button ascended in front of his chair. He quickly pulled out his gavel and spun it in his hand. His red eye glinted as he did a front flip and slammed the gavel down on the button as a pixel version of Brenda appeared on the little screen.

 _"Brenda has been found guilty."_ It read as the pixel Monokuma ran in and grabbed the now panicked pixel Brenda and dragged her across the screen behind him as more text appeared saying, _"Time for the punishment!"_

 ***youtube. watch?v=ba-o18U03wY Just imagine it with a more junk-sounding soundtrack like the Robots movie or Tarzan's Trashin' The Camp!***

Brenda was seen standing alone as she sweated profusely as some kind of set was suddenly being built around her. It took on a old cave like appearance with mossy rocks and spindly vines strung about all over with faded lighting above her as it ran in a narrow line to dimly light up the domed out cave and make it that much more realistic. Suddenly a stone pedestal rose up from the ground in front of Brenda with a Golden Monokuma statue resting on top of a carved out, circular base on the top of the platform.

 **Pack Rat's Trap**

Then Monokuma appeared next to her in an Indiana Jones explorer outfit with a sack filled with rocks as seen from its open top before Monokuma tightened it and held it out for Brenda to take. Knowing what she had to do Brenda reluctantly took it and approached the Golden Monokuma and with a quick flick of her wrist went to switch the platform's contents but an overexcited Monokuma jumped up and snatched the Golden Monokuma above his head. Brenda's eyes widened in horror as the ground began rumbling. The cheering Monokuma became panicked as he looked around before chucking the Golden Monokuma to Brenda, who dropped the sack of pebbles and caught it just before Monokuma was crushed by a giant boulder. But this wasn't a boulder of stone. Brenda's face drained of color when she saw it was a boulder entirely made up of collectible figurines, coins, cards, consoles, trophies, and millions of other random items that could be considered collectibles.

It soon began teetering forward as Brenda turned tail and immediately began running down the now suddenly steep cavern as the boulder soon began chasing after her. It was quickly gaining speed on her and she felt weighed down by the golden statue so she chucked it backwards and continued running. As the boulder spun Monokuma was seen not crushed but merely stuck to the side of the boulder as the Golden Monokuma landed right next to him now stuck as well as the boulder continued chasing Brenda down.

Her legs were tired but Brenda kept trying to run until a red fluorescent light caught her attention up ahead that came from an EXIT sign on a wall in front of her. Brenda's face smiled as she ran over and saw a button to press. Without hesitation she pressed the button and the wall suddenly shot up as Brenda was blinded by headlights! A convertible car was now racing straight at her and Brenda was trapped as the junk boulder and car came racing at her from opposite ends. The collector screamed in despair as the car and boulder collided into her with such speed the boulder smashed into its separate pieces and toppled up into a mountain of junk on top of the convertible and Brenda. After a moment, Brenda's blood was soon seen leaking profusely out from underneath the pile up. Suddenly Monokuma popped up from the wreckage with the intact Golden Monokuma in his paws. He leapt out cheering victoriously as it all faded to black.

I felt my legs turn to noodles again as I fell to my knees still hurting myself as I was now clutching Brenda's pin vest even more tightly in my grip. "Brenda!" I cried out as I heard the others also wail out in sadness and despair.

"What a terrible fate. Dunno if that was worse than the last one or not." Willie whispered, his hat tipped down to cover his eyes as I saw tear streams on his cheek.

"How many friends must we lose to this sick game?" Shana whimpered as she held herself.

Luca was still over by Mikayla holding her up as the veterinarian doubled-over as began crying out something I wasn't expecting.

"Brenda! Please come back! I forgive you! Brenda! Sienna! We spent so much time together! I don't want it to end. Please! *hic* Don't leave me!" Mikayla cried out as Luca had to hold her tightly to ensure she wouldn't fall on her face, not even caring that she was getting him covered in the snot, tears, and vomit she was covered in.

That's when I heard that barbarian begin laughing madly again. "Puhuhuhu! No matter how much you beg and cry, your tears can never bring them back! The time you spent with them means nothing now!"

"No! You're wrong!" I shot up screaming.

"Wazzat?" Monokuma asked me puzzled.

"The time we spent with them does mean something! We may not have known them for all our lives but they've had a major impact in our lives! All of them did! I'll use the time I have spent with my friends to drive me to get us out of here! I don't care about this stupid game! We're gonna find a way out for everyone's sake to make up for the time we should have spent together!" I shouted.

"Are you sure about that?" Monokuma cooed at my unfazed face. I didn't respond. I only continued my hateful glare at him as he began laughing. "What despair you all must be feeling right now! I bet you're all driven up the wall right now! There's no chance of escaping! Only way out is if you kill someone! Plain and simple! Besides things would be boring for our audience if things got all hunky dory between the lot of you."

How many times will this demon find a way to make my heart stop? "What... did you say?"

"That's right! This killing game isn't just to entertain me but it's being broadcasted to the entire viewing world! And I bet a certain Super High School Level Idol has been watching intently." Monokuma purred looking directly at me.

"What? How do you know about Manako's title?" Suddenly my thought process went into overdrive as I shook lightly. "Is... she okay? Sh-She's not stuck in a similar situation as me, is she?"

My nervousness was showing as Monokuma chuckled lightly. "Who can say? After all she's also an important person in _your_ life. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Monokuma laughed like a madman before he disappeared.

"What did you do? WHAT HAPPENED TO MANAKO!" I screamed in pure anger before I felt a hand snatch my wrist and held me back. I expected to see Luca but he was still holding a grief-stricken Mikayla up. I was stunned to see that the one who stopped me was the Ultimate Tattoo Artist of all people.

"Stop." Ollie calmly spoke to me. "Monokuma was trying to get a reaction out of you. Don't let him win."

I didn't want to listen but I knew she was right. I may not like the thought of something happening to my only friend but there's no other reason to truly believe his words. After all it was Monokuma just wanting to see me despair. That was his role in all of this and I need to learn how to play the act so this director doesn't get the outcome he wants.

I looked over at the bloody pool underneath the junk pile one last time before I looked away. "Goodbye Brenda. I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you either."

Soon everyone began making their way to the elevator as we were all dropped off at the library again. Most everyone went their separate ways as I looked at the clock on the wall. It was a little past 5 pm. I looked over to see not everyone had left. Paul and his group quickly approached me.

"So you're the hero again. You helped out tremendously. Now do you still wish to ignore my offer? After all now there are less of you which makes you a more likely target. Especially if you take in account your skills in the class trial. Someone who single-handedly pinned down the blackened twice in a row is an enemy to any future blackened that will arise." Paul questioned me with a stern look of disappointment. Melinda was also glaring at me. Something felt off about her gaze but then again I could just be overthinking it.

I shook my head. "I'm sorry but no. Nothing you say will convince me to join you. Why would I join a pact that is forced to stay away from the others? I won't abandon them just to ensure my own survival."

Ollie then walked next to me and wrapped her arm around mine and pressed herself into me. My face immediately flushed at the sudden contact. "I see dedication in his words and I wish to follow his example." She told Paul who glared at her.

"You really wish to leave my group? Your life will be forfeit if you do." Paul reminded her.

Ollie surprised me when she shook her head. "No. I don't want to leave. I just want to be able to do something more and Kai has more conviction than you. I wish to spend time with him. Not just him but everyone else. I want more freedom to do what I want."

"You want more freedom? Fine. You can be around them as much as you like but don't blame me if you end up as the next victim. That goes for all of you!" Paul called out looking back at Marcel and Melinda.

"H-Huh? Really? Us too?" Marcel asked in complete surprise.

"Yeah. I'll even do so by acquainting myself with Kai and the others who are worthy of my attention." Paul then turned around and began walking off. "I'll see you bright and early tomorrow after breakfast." Paul motioned to me as he walked out. Melinda gave no comment as her gaze almost never left me until she was walking out the door.

"Cool. Guess that means I can go surfing in the pool tonight. Catch you later bra!" Marcel chuckled as he ran off.

I went to move only to see Ollie hadn't released me. "Um... Ollie?"

She looked to me. "What?"

I was amazed she didn't catch on as I tried to pry myself free from her grip. "Oh sorry." She apologized as she released me.

"I-It's fine. You probably forgot you had a hold of me." I chuckled trying to lighten the mood.

"No I didn't forget." She plainly stated.

I sweat-dropped at that. 'This girl really doesn't understand people's personal space.' I thought, lightly scratching my neck nervously.

Soon I heard the elevator come up again and looked over to see Luca and Mikayla there. The two were still a complete mess in the physical sense but Mikayla was in a real mess since it looked like Luca was dragging her drooping body. I quickly ran over to them. "Hey. Why were you guys still in the trial grounds?" I asked concerned.

"I was helping get her on the elevator but Mikayla insisted she stay longer. I don't think she wanted to leave Brenda behind. But I already told her it was too late. We couldn't dig her body up so we just looked over her before I took her back when the elevator came back down." Luca explained. I nodded my understanding and looked back to Ollie and didn't see her anywhere. She must have left without me noticing.

I looked back to him. "Do you need help getting her back to her room?" I inquired Luca.

He smiled softly at me. "I'd appreciate that."

I got on the other side of Mikayla as she stood their unresponsive to everything. The poor thing. I felt terrible for her as we began hauling her over to the dormitory hallway. Once we began making our way down, I looked over to the first two doors of the girl's side and felt my heart drop. They were Brenda's and Sienna's rooms respectively since they had last names that started with letters high in the alphabet. It saddened me that I'd never see them come in or out of their rooms again as we carried Mikayla to the very end of the hall since her last name was last for all the girls.

Luca pulled out a key and opened it. He must have grabbed her key from her ahead of time so he would be ready. Once we opened the door Mikayla suddenly stood up on her own. "Thanks." That was all she said before she took her key from Luca and shakily walked into her room. The door closed so slowly it made very little sound adding to the already tense atmosphere.

I sighed in defeat. "I'm going to bed." I mumbled as I began making my way back to my room.

Luca then gently placed his hand on my shoulder. "Wait... Kai."

I slowly turned my head to gaze back at his sad face but not fully. After all I was still upset with him for...

"I'm sorry that I've been a terrible friend." He apologized out of the blue, making my head turn to him a bit more. "We always had each other's backs when this thing started and when you needed me to be there for you and stand on equal ground when it came to our motives, I rejected it. I was scared to divulge such a thing from my past but you willingly shared yours without question. Also since you defended me in the class trial, now I feel like I owe you big time. So I'd like to share my first motive's video content with you."

I soon turned around and smiled. "Actually Luca I'm not upset anymore." Luca looked stunned at me as I continued speaking. "Just hearing you apologize for your actions is all I really wanted. I can honestly go on without knowing what your first motive contained. After all... after witnessing what Sienna watched... I'd rather not take the chance." He held my arms as shivers spiked up in me thinking about Sienna's video.

"But... that's not fair to you. You did so much for me and I've hardly done anything else in return!" Luca spoke loudly to me.

I shook my head at him slowly. "You really don't see the things you've done? Luca, you offered me help when I was left alone, you comforted Mikayla during her time of need, you ensured I didn't crack my head open in the pool!" I paused for a second when Luca laughed at that last one. "You ran to get Tommy treated when he was hurt, and you even defended me when I was accused by Paul for being the killer. Now you apologized for your previous actions. To me that more than makes up for everything I've done for you. So now I'm in debt to you."

Saying that word instantly made me think of Brenda as I looked down at my feet. "Sorry I just ruined the mood didn't I?"

"No. Don't worry about it Kai. I don't blame you for feeling upset. We all are. We lost two great friends but we still have each other!" Luca chirped. He had a grin on him that reminded me of Brenda's. But that didn't make me sad like I thought, instead it filled me up with that bubbly sensation Brenda's true demeanor gave off in my stomach. Luca then looked a bit worried as he rubbed his upper arm. "We... are still friends, right?"

I felt a warm smile spread itself as that same warmth flowed into the rest of my body, giving me a satisfying feeling relaxation I hadn't felt since before I came here. "Yeah. I think we can still be friends." I chuckled lightly.

Luca smiled with such joy on his face when I said that. He then held his arm out with his hand held in front of his face. I recognized the gesture as a form of a high five that would keep our hands interlocked. I smiled as I threw my hand into his and they clamped tightly together. I felt a suddenly jolt shoot through me when we made contact. I kept my mouth tightly shut since it probably happened from slamming my smooth hand roughly into his calloused hand as we gripped each others hands. We stared into each other's eyes, his special turquoise mixed with my unique shade of gold as we didn't break contact with our eyes or hands for what felt like an eternity.

I felt like maintaining our connection strengthened our bond. Our friendship felt rekindled and burning hot again and I could feel like we stared into each other's souls. I wish I could see what he saw in me but what I saw in him conflicted me. I saw true happiness and joy in his sea foam eyes for this moment but there was something detestable lurking in the back. Something ugly and primal and dark. A demon floating in my new friend's eyes. It looked familiar. I was lost by it as my grip and sights found their disconnection with Luca.

His hand dropped from mine as he looked worried for me. "Kai, what's wrong?"

I quickly plastered my face and shook my head. "Sorry. Nothing's wrong. I just never had such an exchange like that before. Not even with Manako. Well I appreciate your help today. I'm just gonna go shower real quick and take a nap. I'll catch you later!" I waved to him before I turned and made my way back to my dorm. I unlocked the door and stepped in before quickly shutting it and locking it fast.

My mind began racing as I pondered over my interactions with Luca just now. 'What was happening there? What did I feel when I looked into his eyes? When we connected like that? What's going on with me?' There were so many emotions mixed in my head I couldn't even begin to contemplate them all individually. But the big one that was too obviously swirling inside my mind, heart, and soul was... despair. How fitting.

 **Chapter 2: Acceptance is the Best Medicine**

 **END**

 **Deceased Students: 5**

 **Surviving Students: 11**

 ***3rd Person View***

The bell rang as nighttime hours were now in affect. Things were quiet outside in the dormitory hallway. Too eerily quiet to comprehend. Maybe it was because of what transpired earlier with the second class trial and everyone was exhausted. Maybe it was because no one dared to leave in fear of them becoming a victim in this killing game. Or perhaps that what some people wanted.

Soon a creak was heard as a door opened slowly. Then out from the room the occupant's head peeked out and looked down the hallway, checking to see if the coast was clear. The student, seeing no one, made their way out of their room and over to the other side of the hall. They timidly knocked on the door of another student's dorm looking up and down the hall, nervous about what might happen if they'd be caught. A door was heard opening and at first the student jumped up panicked but was relieved to see the door they purposefully knocked on was the one opening.

The room's occupant looked surprised to see the other teenager standing in from of them. "Hey. What are you doing here so late?" The student in their dorm asked.

The student in the hallway sighed, rubbing their arm nervously. "I put a lot of thought into your proposition and I came to a decision. I... I wanna do it. I want to go through with it."

The student in the room leaned forward, closing the door partially as if it would help keep them quiet. "You're sure about this? This is me we're talking about here."

"I'm only doing it because it's you. I trust you and I know we'll be there for each other through it." The one in the hallway nodded.

A smile was seen on the face of the student as they opened their door wide in a welcoming manner. "Then let's get started, shall we."

The student in the hallway smiled as well, stepping into the other student's room as the door closed behind them.

The two students probably thought this meet up went unnoticed however a bright screen light that displayed the whole thing made the watcher hum thoughtfully.

"And what are you two planning?" The voice of the spy asked themselves as they chuckled lowly. The screen quickly shut off, coating them in total darkness.

 **Chapter 3: Plans are Made, Dreams are Shattered**

* * *

 _Wow. I feel physically exhausted writing this one. And no not just because of the fact most of it was written until 2 in the morning. I felt like so much emotion was sucked out of me while writing these depressing, disgusting, gleeful, and suspenseful moments. I honestly think this might be my best chapter yet. But do you guys agree? I wanna know so please leave a review and let me know about your thoughts. Also I'd love it if you favorite and follow this story if you haven't already or if you have then please share it with someone you'd think would love this fanfic! I'm looking forward to sharing my next chapter with you guys so stay tuned for that and until next time, I hope I gave you guys a despairingly good time! See you all soon! Puhuhuhuhu~_


	17. Chapter 3 Part 1: Day 10

**Daily Life**

 **Day 10**

The next morning I soon felt myself stir out of my sleep. My mind was awake but my eyes were refusing to cooperate with it. I guess my body was too tired after the stressful class trial I had to deal with yesterday. If my body didn't want to wake up I figured I could sleep a bit longer. But suddenly I felt my body being shoved and pushed madly. This wasn't my doing as I felt myself rock in the bed. Soon a voice became audible as my eyes slowly opened which made the voice become more and more clear.

"... ai... ake... up K... Wak... Kai! Kai wake up! Kai!" The voice bolstered at me and when my eyes focused I immediately realized I was staring directly at my agent!

I trembled. "T-Terry?"

Terry smiled at me with a relieved sigh. "Thank God you're alright. The last thing I wanted was to tell the press my star was dancing with the stars. And unfortunately I wouldn't be talking about the show."

My eyes erupted in tears that instant as I jumped out of the bed and threw myself at him. We held onto each other tightly as I heaved and sobbed into his shoulder. I could smell the excessive Axe body spray that he wore too much of which would always make me gag with how much he used but at that moment it was like a breath of fresh air to me.

"I'm so happy to see you! I-It's been a nightmare at this school!" I cried into his body as he simply petted my head soothingly.

"I know. I've been desperately trying to break in and get you out." Terry told me.

I soon thought of something as I backed off. "What happened to you when the Monokumas attacked you outside? How did you manage to get in? What about the other students?"

Terry threw his hands up at my onslaught of questions. "Whoa Kai! Take it easy with the questions. I'll answer them all in time but right now I gotta get you away while we have our chance! You've been in hell since you came here and I'm..." Terry paused as a look of dejection appeared on his face. "...I'm so sorry, Kai. If I had known about what would happen... I-I would have never allowed you to come here!"

I shook my head at him and grasped his hand. "Please don't say that. There's no way we could have known that this would happen. I'm just happy you're finally here and we can leave!"

Terry soon smiled at me as he nodded. "That's right. Let's hurry and get out of here! That way you can avoid any more death and despair." Terry took hold of my hand now and bolted towards my door with me in tow.

I looked up to him. "Terry, I know you said you'd answer my questions later but can you at least tell me everyone else that was trapped here is gonna be saved to?"

By this point my door was now open and just as he stepped out, Terry stopped dead in his tracks. With how he positioned himself I couldn't see past him so I stepped out behind him and peered around his side. What came into my sights will haunt me forever as I felt my pupils dilate from utter horror.

 **youtube .com** **/watch?v=W4kxEAVJjSM** Laying against the wall of the hallway was the pale, unmoving body riddled with slashes and cuts all over, a knife implanted in the gut, and a single bullet shot in the middle of the forehead was...

My voice trembled as I somehow croaked, "Luca?" My feet mindlessly shuffled forward before I dropped to my knees right beside him. I could not comprehend this gruesome sight. Luca's sea green eyes weren't bright and colorful like I had grown accustom to but dull and faded like a 1950's television set. All I saw was the emptiness of death and despair written in them from the final look he had made before he had died.

"Not him. How did this... H-How?" I trembled but suddenly my eyes were somehow pried away from the Ultimate Traceur's body to witness an even more gut-wrenching scene as I saw multiple bodies scattered around just outside the hallway and in the commons area!

I saw Marcel and Willie strung upside down by the rope Willie always carried, decapitated, Shana was leaking out blood from every broken shard of glass that protruded out of her body, one body was on fire as the charred corpse was holding a destroyed hunting rifle, and there was even a pool of blood underneath a slightly propped up vending machine where a laptop was in someone's hand that was barely seen poking out from under it.

"Even Paul and Melinda are dead?" I whispered as I saw everyone! Tommy, Ollie, Mikayla, Damian, they were all seen dead with a gruesome cause of their death being so noticeable I immediately upchucked, covering Luca's new and bloodied shoes with traces of my digestive track.

My nostrils burned almost as badly as my eyes. I trembled as I scooted back and bumped into Terry. I turned back to him. "Terry... t-they're all..." My throat suddenly got caught as I trembled to see Terry's hands covered in blood. He looked away with teary eyes.

"Terry!" I screamed as I shot up to my feet, "What is happening? What's going on?!"

Soon that laughter that haunted me sounded as Monokuma appeared! "BWAHAHAHAHAHA! Congratulations Kai! You successfully won the American Mutual Killing Game!"

I stared at the bear in bewilderment. "But... I didn't kill them! I wouldn't!"

"No but you found the blackened who did!" Monokuma clued me in as my sight immediately turned to Terry.

"No... that's not true. Terry! You didn't kill them! You couldn't have!" I shouted out more confused than ever before.

Monokuma chuckled. "You're right he couldn't have. Not alone anyway. He may be a big, strong adult but even he can't take on ten Ultimates by himself. That's why he brought help." Monokuma gestured behind me as I turned and my eyes felt like they would pop with how wide they opened at the sight of my dearest and only friend standing behind me. Manako is Japanese-American heritage with long bright scarlet red hair done in a side ponytail and a crescent moon-shaped barrette in it. She has fair complexion, blue eyes, thin body frame, medium bust size, naturally curvy body frame, long, elegant legs, and always wearing hip, expensive clothing. But this time she was covered completely from head to toe in blood.

"Sorry Kai." She whispered ghostly to me as Terry and Monokuma walked casually over to her.

"M-Manako? That's not possible! Y-You're suppose to be in Las Vegas right now!" I was now completely lost. My only celebrity friend and my agent broke into Hope's Peak just to murder all my classmates and friends? That doesn't make a lick of goddamn sense!

"And since you are the sole survivor and discovered the killers then that means you won the killing game by sacrificing everyone! And I mean _everyone_." Monokuma cooed.

My heart immediately dropped as the realization of his words. "No! NO! You can't execute them! They're not even students here!"

"They are now since they entered this school and participated in the killing game!" Monokuma told me but my head shook furiously.

"But the rules! There can be no more than two kills! Only one blackened is punished! There wasn't even a class trial! You can't ignore the rules! You even said you won't!" But my screams didn't seem to matter.

"Now then I've prepared a very special punishment for Terry Bobinski and Manako Kumara!" Monokuma cheered.

"NO! I WON'T LET YOU TAKE THEM AWAY FROM ME!" I cried out tears, snot, and vomit juice seeping out of me.

All Monokuma did was cry out his own statement in return. "Let's give it everything we got! IIIIIt's PUNISHMENT TIIIIIIIIME!"

Before I could process anything two giant cement blocks flew down and crushed Manako and Terry flat! Their blood splattered everywhere as I was also hit by it. I was shakily looking at myself, now drenched in their shared blood. I felt the scream of terror build up after a minute of processing what had just happened as Monokuma laughed non-stop at my look of pure despair.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!" I bolted up only to fall down as my head hit something. I didn't see what because my eyes were clenched shut from the pain. When my eyes did open, the first thing I saw was my dresser in front of me. I blinked in confusion as I looked around to see I was in my dorm. I had fallen out of bed and I felt profusely wet. My body was sweaty but that wasn't all. I touched my forehead to see drops of blood on my fingertips.

"It was a nightmare." I whispered to myself. I pushed myself up and struggled to walk straight, trying to make my way to the bathroom. The head injury and stress my body felt from that nightmare had me staggering as I undressed myself and turned the shower on. I immediately hopped in once I discarded the last of my clothes as I felt the cold water splash on me. I hated cold showers but right now I needed it. Despite knowing the fact that I only dreamed all that now, I couldn't help but sink into a ball as I held myself and cried into my body.

I never felt so scared and alone then I did at that moment. Even though every night I try my best to dream and hope that tomorrow makes it better, I'll just wake up to the cold reality and not a thing has changed. That dream was a cruel reminder that I was still trapped in a killing game in a school that is suppose to bring hope to the world, where five innocent students have already died because of the demonic teddy bear that was forcing us to kill each other for sport, entertainment, and despair.

Also learning that the cameras weren't just there for Monokuma to monitor us but was to broadcast our killing game to the entire viewing world? The only reason people would watch this sick, twisted game was to update themselves on the lives of the sixteen trapped students. Everyone we care about would watch to see if we are safe. And those who know of the fate of the first five victims have probably clicked away and are mourning the loss of their loved ones, not caring for the fate of those who are surviving.

It made me wonder if that really is the case. If this was being broadcasted live, surely the police would be doing everything to try and break us out. Maybe Terry is with them. My mind flashed back to my video of Terry screaming out to me as the Monokumas overwhelmed him. I shook my head ferociously to get rid of any negative thought my mind was about to think up.

'I can't think that way. I'm a celebrity. Someone people look up to and there are many scared people here that need someone to keep their hopes up. I need to be that beacon for the others.' I thought to myself as I stood up and finished bathing myself. I hopped out, grabbing the provided towel hanging up and dried my body off. I soon got my clothes back on and smiled in the mirror as I combed my hair. 'I made a promise to Jayden. I need to keep it no matter what obstacles try to block my path.'

I quickly departed from my bathroom and began making my way out when Monokuma appeared out of nowhere in front of me.

"Hey Kai!" Monokuma greeted me when he popped up, making me step back in surprise.

"What is it now?" I growled at him, after my expression of surprise turned into a hateful glare.

Monokuma looked away. He seemed hurt but he was most likely acting sad. "Awww. What a harsh greeting. And I took some time out of my busy schedule to see you after the others. But if you're gonna be like that then I might as well leave now. Toodles!"

I didn't register what he said at first but when it kicked in I stepped towards him. "Wait! What was that?"

Monokuma looked back with his usual smirk. "Did I peak your interest? Well I may not be well liked by you kids but I am your headmaster so I should be treated with even a small fraction of your respect every once in a while."

I growled inwardly but swallowed my pride back as I greeted him, expressionless and monotone. "Hello Headmaster Monokuma."

"Good! But it sounds boring when you say it like that. Try again but this time do it in an Australian accent!" Monokuma pleaded me.

I growled as I put a fake smile on my face. "Gday Headmaster. I reckon that you think I'd be waggin' again but I haven't done so since I was in Kindy, mate." My accent came off naturally and not over-the-top like everyone else does impersonating well-known Australians like the Crocodile Hunter as a prime example.

Monokuma let out an impressed whistle with his arms folded. "Wow. Now that was an authentic accent. I knew it was right with you being the Ultimate Actor! You're so well-rounded and talented! Can I have an autograph? Also when you sign it can you speak like a New Yorker?" He suddenly was begging me with a Monokuma head shaped autograph book in his paws and a ballpoint pen with his head acting as the button on the end.

I glared at him. "There's no way I'd give you one. Besides are you trying to tell me you came down here just to get an autograph and hear some cheesy accents? I seriously doubt that."

Monokuma quickly threw his Monopad and Monopen away as I somehow heard a comical glass shatter sound effect play out of nowhere when they crashed onto the ground behind him.

"Alright ya got me. You really are perceptive. I came down to see you and let you know about some important information." He confessed.

"Important information?" I repeated back confused.

"Of course. I feel obligated since it is vital for you. Firstly since you all did survive another superb class trial, that means a new area of the school will be unlocked for you all so keep an eye out for that. Also what I said earlier wasn't completely true. I am of course referring to Brenda receiving Sienna's motive video." Monokuma began.

I sneered. "You said you didn't give it to her!"

He chuckled at me. "Puhuhu! That was true but I didn't say if I did have a role in it ending up with her or not. I simply informed the person on a _potential_ blackened and they put the disc in her room. They simply got it right with a lucky guess of who they thought the blackened was on their part."

I blinked, registering what he said. "Are you telling me... Someone is working for you? Like a spy?"

"Spy, traitor, colleague, whatever you wanna call it." He shrugged making my face puff up in anger.

"How is that fair?" I yelled at him.

"In technicality it isn't, however they don't have any benefits such as knowledge of who the blackened is or knowing motives or anything. They're still playing this game like everyone else but they get a few fun perks to stir up some fun. Besides that's not the only thing you should be concerned about." Monokuma informed me.

My eyes narrowed at him suspiciously. "What else is there?"

"I couldn't help but notice a secret rendezvous that occurred in the late hours last night. I didn't get the details on it but someone could be planning something despair inducing right under your noses. And no the traitor is not one of them."

"Who was it then?" I asked but he just bolstered out a laugh.

"I can't tell you. That would spoil a perfectly good surprise. Besides it would be unfair to let you know when I didn't tell anyone else about it." He replied.

"What? You told the others?" I questioned him again in surprise.

"Yep and I bet they're all just _dying_ to find out who these people are. Don't you?" Monokuma asked me in a dreary voice.

I felt my heart stop at his tone and use of words as he laughed madly before he disappeared again.

With only one thing on my mind I rushed out of my room, not even bothering to lock it behind me, as I ran out to look for everyone else. I soon heard mixed shouting from the cafeteria and I quickly ran in that direction.

Upon entering the room, I saw everyone standing towards each other, screaming at either one other person or multiple people. Willie was shouting at Ollie and Marcel, Shana, Tommy, and Mikayla were yelling at Melinda, and Paul was arguing with Damian. Luca however was rushing around trying to stop the arguments but was having very little success on his own.

I ran up to them and Luca rushed to me when he saw me approaching. "Kai! I need help! Everyone is framing each other as traitors!" He said to me, looking exhausted.

I looked around, knowing that to try and force them to stop wouldn't work, trying to find another means to make them stop fighting. I had to be fast because some of them are starting to get physical with each other.

Soon I saw a fire alarm on the wall near the entrance as I ran back and grabbed the handle.

"Kai?" Luca asked me, sounding nervous as he looked over at me. I held the alarm and gave him a silent nod, signaling him of my intention, before I yanked it down. At that moment the fire alarm blared as red, flashing lights appeared just like when Monokuma revealed the staircase to the second floor. Everyone arguing immediately ceased their bickering as they covered their ears to shield themselves from the piercing siren sound. Me and Luca also had our ears covered before it suddenly shut off.

That alarm didn't go off for very long. It must have been shut off manually. I looked around and I noticed Mikayla was removing her hands from her face and not the sides of her head. 'Was she not covering her ears?' I wondered before I looked over at everyone else.

I gave them all a disappointed look. "What do you all think you were doing?"

Shana pointed at Melinda accusingly. "She's the traitor! She has to be! Melinda has been the only one here getting her rocks off at this killing game!"

"Aww. And here I thought little Miss Know-It-All was actually knowing what she was saying." Melinda mocked her before Shana snarled at her and went to attack her but Luca and Tommy instantly latched onto her and held her back. Shana made no movement as she looked down at her stomach. Melinda had her Bowie knife in hand somehow as its tip gently prodded Shana. 'Melinda is blindingly fast alright. Had Luca and Tommy not stopped her, Shana would have impaled herself.' I thought in horror.

"Don't worry sweetheart, this wouldn't have killed you. I have it positioned just so it would miss any major vital organs... _barely_." She told her with a dark look in her cold, dead eyes. Shana sneered at her but backed off, knowing she was outmatched against the Ultimate Huntress.

Before I could say anything, Damian spoke up next. "I think Paul is the most likely suspect for being the traitor."

"And what pray-tell is your reasoning for that?" Paul deadpanned at him.

"Isn't it obvious? The Ultimate Hacker here needs to keep himself entertained. You still have that laptop of yours and yet all our electronic devices were taken. That's super suspicious. And what better way to keep yourself entertained than by causing mayhem for all of us." Damian told him but Paul just shrugged at him.

Paul let out a tiny chuckle. "You think that's enough to convict me as the traitor? Haven't I said multiple times how idly boring this place and this killing game is? Also recall I gave up all my other electronic devices and Monokuma put up firewalls even I can't hack to ensure I didn't cheat at this dumb game."

Damian smiled back. "It could just have been one big act to fool us all into thinking you don't have access or that this is all uneventful. And if a robot bear put up firewalls you can't even hack into, then why are you even here amongst us Ultimate students?"

That insult sent a serious glare from Paul's eyes and Damian returned it. I swear I saw lightning shooting from their gaze as it collided against each other, not breaking and not moving, igniting a rivalry.

Paul soon spoke. "I have every reason to believe everyone here has potential with working for Monokuma. A sad DJ like you has a lot of potential." Their glare war raged on as their eyes squinted at each other more.

Now it was Willie's turn to hop into the killing game turned accusing game. "I bet one of these two are the backstabbin' varmint." He said, looking at Ollie and Marcel.

"What reason do you have to believe that? Is it because we're simply aligned with Paul and Melinda?" Ollie asked him with a look of disappointment.

"Well that but I'm simply saying in Marcel's case he might have aligned himself with that bear just because he ain't all that smart and he'd use any advantage he can get to survive." Willie explained a bit.

Marcel nodded. "That's true." He then realized what he said and held his hands out, shaking them as well as his head. "Wait man! I didn't mean to say it like that! I didn't accept any proposal from Monokuma to betray anyone! Honest!"

"And Ollie here would do it simply because she looks... How do I describe it? Oh right. Being creepier than a two-headed rattlesnake ." Willie added.

"You're basing your logic on me simply because you think I'm creepy? How judgmental of you." Ollie shook her head with a small drop of her head.

"That ain't judgmental. It's logical. Monokuma is creepy and you're creepy. Not to mention you just look downright creepy too. That means you are most likely working together." Willie tried to explain but a dark gaze from Ollie stopped him from continuing.

"That's asinine of you to judge me and my actions solely on my looks. You don't even know me. Besides I could say you're working with Monokuma because you're creepy." Ollie said to him.

Willie looked offended. "I ain't creepy!"

"That's your opinion. Just like how it's my opinion to think that I'm not creepy. You see what I mean? I can't make judgments on someone because they seem creepy when I don't even know their character but that's what you're doing with me. Basing your dumb theories and ideas on your opinion on someone's looks over their personality is biased of you." Ollie explained to him.

"Now look here lil' lady." Willie growled at him but Luca stepped in front of him.

"Willie, that's enough! We're not continuing this." Luca growled at him, blocking the cowboy from the tattoo artist.

Willie looked at him and turned away with a huff. Ollie seemed surprised Luca came to her rescue like that.

Melinda chuckled. "Aww, what a martyr you are, Luca. Trying to defend everyone here. It's cute really, seeing you squirm to keep the peace. But we haven't gone over the most suspicious of us all."

Paul's glare war with Damian suddenly ended as he looked at Luca. "She's right. One person here is the most suspicious of all."

The two slowly walked towards Mikayla, only to walk past her. Then to Shana but again went past her. Then Tommy, then Luca, and finally they stopped in front of...

"Me?" I asked in shock. The two didn't answer, only stared at me with hateful eyes.

Luca immediately ran forward, again getting between me and them. "No way in hell are you dubbing him the traitor!"

"But his being the traitor is one of the most logical when you think about it. He's basically been a god at the investigations and class trials. Making deductions and solving these mysteries left and right when all he is is a measly actor." Paul told him.

"An actor may recall his roles in movies and play characters to a T but that doesn't mean he's perfect with everything. An actor that's been figuring out the blackened with ease like some detective? That's highly suspicious." Melinda added.

Luca's eyes glared again. "I don't care what logic or deductions you come up with, I'll believe in Kai any day."

"Same here." Damian shouted as he stood next to Luca.

Soon everyone began piling up in front of me in a protective manner.

"If it wasn't for him, we'd all be dead." Shana replied.

"She's right." Tommy agreed.

"I ain't got a reason to doubt him." Willie noted.

"Of course I have every reason to trust Kai." Mikayla said, looking at me with determined but sad eyes.

What through me through the loop was seeing the last two students also line up with the others.

Ollie spoke up first. "You two are clever yes but it is because of Kai we're alive. I think if he wanted to stir trouble he'd have done something suspicious by now. I haven't noticed that at all with him."

"I mean the guy is awesome. Since everyone else believes in him, then I wanna believe in him too." Marcel even told them his thoughts too which shocked me to see those two defend me too.

"Y-You guys..." I whispered.

Paul and Melinda looked over everyone with dejected eyes. They didn't like the fact every single one of them came to defend me like that.

"You're all idiots. What do you have to gain from this? An autograph? A date with a celebrity? A kiss on the cheek? He's probably playing you all right now and feigning innocence to make you believe him." Paul growled at everyone.

"Kai's not underhanded like you two." Shana shouted back.

"Enough of this nonsense. Obviously we can't figure out who the traitor is but maybe we can figure out who rendezvoused last night." Melinda cooed.

"How?" Marcel asked confused.

She simply chuckled. "All we have to do is simply call out if we met up in the rendezvous or not."

Mikayla deadpanned at her. "Seriously? That's your plan? That's so stupid! Almost as dumb as Marcel."

Marcel folded his arms. "Why am I always picked on by everyone, man?"

"Alright everyone if you don't call it out fast then the last person to call out will be the most suspicious." Melinda called out like a Kindergarten teacher.

When she said that something came to mind. "Wait. Melinda, are you trying to..."

But before I could say anything Melinda spoke even louder which cut me off. "Then let's go! 3... 2... 1... Go!"

Instantly I heard someone shout out, "It wasn't me!"

We all looked over to the voice to see the person who shouted out first with their hand raised was Tommy.

Melinda grinned like the Cheshire Cat at that moment. "And we have one of our culprits."

Tommy's hand stooped down a bit. "W-What? But I said I didn't meet up with anyone."

The huntress chuckled lowly. "Oh foolish boy, it's obvious that one of the people who met up would want to ensure their innocence so by going first so eagerly you exposed yourself."

"But you said the most suspicious would be the _last_ person! Not the first." Tommy argued.

I sighed out. "Tommy, that was just a trick. Melinda wanted to give you a false sense of security."

Paul smirked. "She laid a trap and caught her prey. Just like how the Ultimate Huntress should." His face quickly transformed into a cold state at Tommy. "Alright then fossil boy, who did you meet up with?"

Tommy began backing up slowly. "N-No. You guys have it wrong! I-I-I didn't see anyone last night! I swear!"

The two of them along with Mikayla, Damian, Marcel, and Ollie began walking closer to him which pushed him closer to the wall until he was pressed against it and surrounded. Everyone of them was eyeing him with suspect and displeasure at his sadly obvious attempts to defend himself. I felt bad but given his reactions it seemed that Tommy did in fact make a rendezvous with someone. But who?

"Confess." Paul demanded the paleontologist.

Tommy shook in his boots and looked away. "I... won't say."

Paul shook his head in disappointment. "Then your fate has been sealed." He then turned to Willie. "You! Tie him up!"

Willie looked shocked at that command before a glare came out. "Sorry? When did you become my Pa?"

"Do you want to let someone as untrustworthy as him to run around free?" Paul asked him.

Willie groaned as he approached Tommy with his rope in hand. "Sorry partner. Just... try not to struggle too much. Don't wanna give ya rope burn."

Tommy closed his eyes before Willie took hold of his arm. But suddenly a shadow whooshed past me and into the crowd before they shoved Willie back and stood in front of Tommy with their arms outstretched in a protective stance.

Everyone blinked at this. "Shana?" Willie asked, trying to make sense of her actions as she glared at us all.

Tommy opened his eyes and gasped. "Shana, what are you doing?"

"It's me. I was the one who met with Tommy last night. So put that damn rope away now." Shana confessed with a solemn and low voice.

Tommy looked to her sorrowfully. "Shana no." He whimpered out.

Shana looked back to him with a sympathetic smile. "It's fine. Really. I can't let you be the one to be accused."

Melinda shook her head. "I should have known it was you. You two have been around each other a lot. Well now that we know who met with who in that rendezvous, tie them both up."

"Why?" Tommy exclaimed.

"You're both lucky we're not getting you two executed for your treachery but we still can't trust you." Melinda explained as she took the rope from Willie and approached them.

"You're not giving us a chance to explain ourselves!" Shana shouted angry now.

"Do we need a reason? I doubt anything you say will convince us otherwise. Continue Melinda." Paul instructed but I rushed in and grabbed the rope and attempted to get it away from her grasp.

"That's enough! You have no right to do this!" I shouted.

Luca appeared next to me and grabbed the rope too and also tugged on it. "This is going too far! Knock it off!"

Melinda growled as she tugged back. "Let go, you stupid mongrels!"

It became a tug-of-war as we fought for the rope with Willie, Paul, and others jumping in with their own agenda as the arguing picked up again.

Shana growled as she took her pickax and lifted it up with a bloodcurdling scream that instantly silenced our fighting before she brought it down at us! Those of us who were closest had to push the rest of the class back to avoid getting hit, causing all nine students to stumble back and fall down. The rope was hooked by the pickax as Shana pinned her tool into the tiled floor with the spooled up rope caught underneath.

We all looked at Shana in horror as she began screaming at us. "WILL ALL OF YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP FOR ONE SECOND AND LET US EXPLAIN OURSELVES? BETTER YET JUST STAY THERE AND WATCH US!"

The enraged ox, better known as Shana, turned tail and stomped over to Tommy. Tommy looked even more terrified as she now stood in front of him.

"Sh-Shana, what are you gonna..." But before he could react, he was silenced by Shana with a dirt-covered finger hovering above his lips. Before long she removed it and replaced it with her own lips as their mouths connected!

Everyone gawked at the sight of Shana kissing Tommy! Even Tommy looked like he was caught off guard! After about a minute of silence with us just lying there stunned and those two sucking mouths, they broke apart as they smiled sweetly at each other afterward.

"So you met up last night... so you could get together?" Damian asked them in great confusion.

Shana looked back and shrugged. "Basically, yeah."

Marcel swallowed as he blushed. "Um... then did you guys... you know... d-did you two kinda..."

"Did you have sex?" Ollie asked out of nowhere as everyone looked at her, shocked by her forwardness.

Shana glared and Tommy was madly blushing at Ollie too. Shana spoke up. "One; that is disgusting you'd even want to know let alone ask. And two; that's an invasion of privacy so we have no right to tell you! But to cancel out any perverted thoughts or fantasies you freaks might be having, the answer is no. We did absolutely nothing explicit."

"Like I said she's creepy." Willie grumbled which earned him an icy glare from Ollie.

Everyone started to get back to their feet by this point. Shana grabbed the handle of her pickax and yanked on it as it pried out of the ground. She then reached down and took Willie's rope before chucking it at him, who caught it in the nick of time before it hit his face.

"Next time you try tying up my guy and I'll ensure this gets buried in you head deeper than your hand has been up a horse's plot." Shana warned him, swinging her pickax around like a baton.

Willie just glared at her but made no witty remark as he strapped the rope back on his waist.

"See you guys? If you would have just let us explain ourselves before then all this unnecessary drama wouldn't have happened." Tommy told us.

But Paul sneered at him. "Well if you had just told us who you met with then this all would've been avoided."

"I hate agreeing with Paul of all people but he's right. Why keep something like that a secret?" Damian asked confused.

Tommy blushed. "Well it's because we didn't want to come out with our relationship until we were more comfortable with it."

"We knew that if we came out then everyone would suspect we were up to something just like how Paul's group has been suspected time and time again." Shana continued.

"But we're in a death game here. Why commit yourselves to a serious relationship right now of all times?" I questioned them.

Shana smiled at me. "Kai, do you remember what Tommy said when we were at the pool?"

My mind flashback to that moment. _Tommy looked down sadly. "I didn't think about that prediction for years and then it just happens to come true? I'm just a lucky guy with his career who has an unlucky streak with everything else as well. I can never catch a break, never get friends, never get a girlfriend, never..."_

"Tommy has had a rough life even before coming here and I wanted to show him that his bad luck is not something that should rule his life or way of thinking. After we separated, Tommy joked at how me and him acted like an old, married couple in there but I told him that it wasn't a bad idea to try and be a couple." Shana explained before Tommy took over.

"I told her that I was joking but when she suggested we do get together, I told her it was up to her. I didn't want to force her into something she might regret so all I asked of her was that she actually put thought into it and come to her own conclusion on the matter. Then last night she surprised me and told me she wanted to go through with it. The rendezvous wasn't planned out. It was very much a surprise to me as it was to you. But we spent most of last night simply talking, going over details about our relationship and just getting to know each other better than before. Nothing bad or backstabbing everyone else was discussed. It was just... us." Tommy wrapped things up as he also wrapped his right arm around her shoulders.

Melinda growled. "Well this could still be a major cover up you two planned so we have no reason to believe anything you said."

I walked up to them. "Did you discuss about any intimate contact with each other last night?"

Shana nodded. "Yeah. We agreed to resist any PDA situations in secret let alone in public to avoid our relationship from becoming known. If something even as simple as holding hands became a habit in secret then it might become instinctual to do when were around each other where you guys might see us."

I smiled at them before looking back. "Then I can trust them."

"What? Are you really gonna trust them so easily?" Melinda asked me with disbelief in her tone.

I nodded. "Yes. I don't feel like their words and actions are scripted. It feels legit. Especially Tommy's reaction when Shana kissed him. They made an agreement to not show any signs of PDA and yet Shana did so in front of everyone? I bet Tommy was shocked that she broke that arrangement so quickly."

Luca stood next to me. "If Kai believes them then so will I."

Ollie was next to stand by us. "I believe their words too."

And just like before everyone gathered with us leaving Melinda and Paul all by their lonesome.

"Fine. Believe what you will but don't come crying to us when those three stab you all in the back." Paul pointed at Shana, Tommy, and myself.

"Also I wanna know how Monokuma didn't know about what their meeting was about." Melinda added.

Marcel looked thoughtful. "That's right. When Monokuma mentioned that, he said he didn't know about the details of the meeting they had. Did they mess with the camera?"

Mikayla's eyes rolled. "No, you idiot. The rules prevent any sabotage on the cameras from happening. If they had, they'd be dead."

"Well the reason he didn't know is most likely because when we met up, we only whispered to each other and with our backs toward the camera so he couldn't see or hear what we were saying." Shana told us.

"Then him telling us something evil was planned was only a guess or a twisted lie." Luca theorized.

"Yeah it was an assumption." Monokuma said sadly in front of us as we all jumped back with a collective shout of surprise. "Since I couldn't figure out what they were talking about I simply had to assume it was bad since they wanted it secret even from me. How disappointing it is to learn that it was just some lame hookup and not a team up to commit a big, complicated murder."

Suddenly his depressed demeanor was replaced with his usual cheery attitude. "Oh well! That drama beforehand more than made up for it! But you!" Now he was angry as his red eye flashed at me. "What's the big idea? You do realize how sensitive my ears are compared to yours right? Don't go sounding alarms like that. Especially without my permission!"

"First of all you're not a dog. Secondly, I only pulled it to stop the fighting." I explained, motioning towards the others.

"Well I don't care! You're lucky I don't punish you for that." Monokuma growled to me.

I smirked. "Nice one but you can't. I haven't broken any rules."

"Maybe not this time but you will if you try it next time." The bear warned me as our handbooks suddenly beeped. I grabbed mine out of my pocket and saw the rules had updated.

 _"Rule 8: No alarm may go off without consent from the headmaster."_ It read. I growled in slight annoyance as I noticed everyone else had their handbooks out, reading the new rule.

"Puhuhuhu! AAAHAHAHAHA!" Monokuma laughed out loud as he vanished again.

Now that he was gone, we were able to continue. Everyone looked exhausted after all that fighting. "Let's just forget about all that had happened for now and find the entrance to the new area." Damian suggested.

"Huh? New area?" Marcel questioned him.

"Remember after the first class trial? Monokuma revealed the next floor of the school after we survived it and he did mention it when telling us about the traitor and rendezvous." Damian reminded him.

"Then we should head up to the second floor and search there." Paul said as he, Melinda, and others began walking out.

I was also following but was stopped by someone's voice. "Kai!" I looked back to see Shana and Tommy approaching me, their hands joined together and their fingers interlocked. Tommy spoke up. "We wanted to thank you for defending us like that."

"Well a lot of people have suspicion of us three and besides I didn't see you guys using this relationship as an act. I may be fooled from time to time such as with the two previous blackened but this doesn't feel like last time. It seems legit and so I'll trust you both."

"And we'll trust you. It's your talent for picking up on acts that have helped us catch the culprit everytime so I don't have a reason to doubt you either." Shana told me with a sweet smile on her face.

Soon the two walked past me with Shana resting her head against Tommy's shoulder and Tommy didn't seem to mind the dirt-covered, hard helmet pressed into it. I smiled at the sight as a feeling suddenly welled in my stomach. I was happy that those two found a way to cope with this situation and help each other through it but something about it made me feel saddened. Maybe it was because I didn't have someone like they have each other? I can't be sure but I do have spectacular friends that have helped me and who I can help like Luca, Mikayla, Damian, and Willie, to name a few. Also Ollie and Marcel seem to want to hang out with us more so I might see how they are.

After a bit I found myself at the stairs to the second floor before I went up and after a bit of walking I soon saw everyone gathered past the fitness room into a hallway I don't recall every seeing before. At the end was a red curtain that everyone stood in front of, staring at it curiously. I quickly approached them and tapped Mikayla on the shoulder since she stood the furthest back in the group and closest to me.

"Hey Mikayla, do you remember this hallway and curtain being here before?" I questioned her suspiciously.

She shook her head. "Not a clue."

That was all she said. I noticed her eyes were dark with purple bags underneath them. It looks like Mikayla was still having trouble wrapping her head around the idea that her two closest friends were murdered and executed. The result of it was most likely major depression and lack of sleep. I felt terrible but I knew there's nothing I can do right now.

It felt like someone's gaze was on us but when I looked up, no one was. I swore I did see a head turn back at the last second but I wasn't able to identify who.

Soon Marcel walked up to the curtain. "Whoa man. This is weird. Whadda ya think is behind it?"

"Why don't you open it and find out?" Melinda suggested with an immensely bored face.

Marcel shrugged as he did so. He put both hands through the split in the middle and pushed them to the sides. We all were even more confused when we saw a wall there.

"Hey what gives?" Shana asked annoyed.

Marcel patted on the wall. "It's solid. I thought there was suppose to be an entrance to the next area."

"There should be. This is the only place on the second floor where it could be since there wasn't a hallway here before." Damian replied.

I hummed thoughtfully. Some of the others heard it as they looked back at me. "Kai? Is there something we're missing here?" Ollie asked me.

"It's just... This curtain has a particular set up. I mean there's a rope on the right side to open it up and the lighting seems to be focused on that side." I noted outloud before stepping up next to Marcel before grabbing the open curtains. "Um... Please step back."

Marcel complied with a look of embarrassment for not realizing my intention sooner. Once out of the way, I pulled them closed before walking stage right and grasping the curtain's rope. My fingers fidgeted on the rope from nervousness and to get a better hold. Once I felt the moment was right, I yanked down on the rope and it easily slid open, revealing the wall. Or a lack thereof.

Everyone looked shocked when they saw no wall there but another staircase going up to another floor. And on that staircase stood a formally dressed Monokuma with a black suit jacket, white button-up shirt and vest, red rose, black top hat, and no pants or shoes. "TA-DA! Thank you one and all for attending this magical reveal!" He shouted out, bowing to us. "And let's not forget my lovely assistant!" His arms motioned in my direction!

A lot of people now looked at me with shock and once again suspicion. I shook my hands at them. "No! I had no part in this!"

"Why should we believe that? You seem to know what to do when it came to the curtain when Marcel failed." Paul snarled at me.

"T-That was just a guess! Besides I'm an actor. Being behind a curtain before a big reveal is kinda my thing. I swear I'm not playing along with Monokuma." I swore to them but most of their eyes showed they either didn't believe me or they wanted to but weren't sure. There were still a few that didn't seem to have any doubts in me so that was nice but I would've preferred having everyone believe in me.

"Well anyways not only am I here to introduce the third floor of the school but also to reveal that there is a special perk for one lucky student!" Monokuma announced.

Tommy sighed. "Well I'm out of the running."

"What kind of special perk?" Mikayla asked, her eyes squinted at the neatly dressed bear.

"One that is hidden somewhere _new_ but that's all I can say. The perk will become clear once it is found. So then... happy hunting!" With that said white smoke puffed up, masking Monokuma from sight before it and Monokuma vanished.

"Those are words I'm always glad to hear." Melinda chuckled as she rushed up the stairs. Soon everyone else began running up too with a sudden gusto in everyone's motivation to check out the new floor and find this perk. I followed behind quickly.

* * *

 _And that's all folks! This chapter was gonna be longer but I know very long chapters can be tedious to read so I just found a spot I thought would be good to leave off on and started the next chapter with where it would have continued if I didn't break it down. Hopefully work and life don't get in their way of my writing like it has been already so I'll try to work on it ASAP! As a side note I will let you all know that this fic, once completed will be redone to make the story persistant and better than it is now! Anyways what perk could be awaiting and where was it hidden? You'll find out in the next chapter! Or maybe not... Guess you'll have to wait! But until then I'll see you soon! Puhuhuhu~_


	18. Chapter 3 Part 2: Day 10 Part 2

Upon going up I saw many hallways and doors like before. Most of which consisted classrooms but there were a few doors that did peak my interest most. I went into a small hallway and approached a big doorway with two doors that easily swung open. Inside I saw rows and rows of chairs lined up on a carpeted staircase set-up with a grand piano in front, too many different instruments behind the chairs on the top stair, and the room designed with musical notes and bars. Obviously I found the school's music room. It had a very calming atmosphere as I heard choir music softly playing in the background; Just like the theme music to Halo 2.

Inside the room already was Mikayla, Tommy, and Shana who were busy rummaging throughout every instrument and nook and cranny the room provided. Most likely searching for the hidden perk Monokuma mentioned. Tommy and Shana seemed to preoccupied helping each other out to notice Mikayla struggling with a drum set that began falling apart on her. I quickly ran over and grabbed the cymbals before they fell over and helped her put it all back. But before I could say anything Mikayla walks off without a glance or thanks for helping.

'She really is down in the dumps right now.' I thought sadly as I looked over and jumped seeing a shadow in the window of the door before it vanished. "Was that..."

But my train of thought came to a grinding halt when I heard a frustrated Shana stomp and growl.

"Grr! There's nothing in here pointing out any kind of perk. Just damn music shit!" She was already making her way out as Tommy followed after. He was trying to help her calm down. I sighed as I made my way out as well.

I saw Marcel and Ollie outside one of the many classrooms and decided to approach them and see if they discovered anything. "Hey Marcel, Ollie. Did you guys find anything?"

The two looked to me with saddened faces. Ollie was the first to speak. "No. The classrooms were all the same as the last two floors."

"The windows were reinforced and blocked off and no sign of escape through any of them. It's a real buzz killer man. Especially since there seems to be no sign of that perk anywhere." Marcel added.

I sighed. "Well it was best to double check. There has to be an oversight Monokuma missed somewhere."

I soon left them alone as they continued their conversation and I soon noticed a big cherry wood door that was uniquely designed with fancy curvatures. Outside it was Paul and Melinda as they looked around it curiously. I quickly walked to them. "Hey there guys. What's up with this room? Why haven't you gone in?"

"The door is locked. We can't get in. Even though this is the most vital room to explore." Paul grumbled.

My head tilted a bit after hearing him say that. "Why's that?"

Melinda looked back with a smile. "Because this is the headmaster's office." She answered.

I looked at her in disbelief. "What! How can you tell? There's no nameplate or sign saying so."

Paul shook his head. "So naive. Just look at this door. It is far too special and unique to be another classroom and every room with unique qualities had a sign. But this one is too well designed for the use of multiple students. This is for the use of a special man, such as one the president would be worthy to sit behind. Or in our case the headmaster."

"And that beady little eyed freak is in there." Melinda added seeing my disbelief. Her eyes narrowed. "Don't look at me like I'm crazy. Monokuma has declared himself headmaster here so it's obvious that is where he is hiding and that is why the door is locked. And if the headmaster is there then that means the mastermind behind this game is also there."

'I'm not saying she's wrong but she does seem crazy.' I thought but that's not the only thing I thought. It was just something felt off here. Theses two seemed off more today then the other days. They seem more irritable than normal which doesn't seem possible but they do.

Before I could think on it further that same laugh sounded as we looked down to see the devil suddenly standing in front of us. We back off from how close he was as he chuckled. "Well you sleaze balls got it right! This is indeed the headmaster's office! My office as it is."

"Then why don't you just let us in? Why are we unable to search here?" I asked him with a hate filled glare.

"Well my rules do allow me to put in certain restrictions on how much you can search the school so there's that!" Monokuma responded.

Melinda just chuckled. "Well that sucks. I can just break the door down... or shoot it down." She emphasized her point by removing her rifle and cocking it.

Monokuma however shook his head. "Nuh-uh-uh. That would violate the rules."

Melinda blinked in confusion. "What rules?"

That's when our handbook suddenly vibrated with that familiar jingle. I had a strong feeling what it would be but I looked at it regardless to confirm my suspicion. Sure enough a new rule was added. _"Rule 9: Breaking any lock door is prohibited."_ It read.

Melinda growled. "No surprise you'd pull something like that. You're no fun." She regretfully unloaded the rifle and placed it back in its pouch.

"Aww. Don't be upset. Besides there is one thing in there you do have access to." Monokuma whispered to us.

Paul looked at him in surprise. "What is it? Tell me!"

"Easy there Charlie Sheen! I was gonna tell you freaks anyways. Sheesh" Monokuma seemed to roll his eyes as he continued. "So with my permission you can access the school files of every student here."

"Our school files are in there?" I asked him.

"Yep! All your previous school lives from before entering Hope's Peak are all listed in there. Including grades and extracurricular activities as well as attendance and any suspensions and explosions. However a dead student's files are unavailable as they are promptly destroyed after they are confirmed dead. This also includes their medical files in the nurse's office." Monokuma explained.

Paul looked utterly disappointed by this knowledge. "Whatever. Come, we are wasting our time here." Paul and Melinda turned and walked off somewhere. I looked back to Monokuma but he was gone too. I groaned as I walked away to see if there was anything left and I noticed one door remained that looked to belong to a classroom but something felt off about it. I noticed the small window had a red curtain behind it to block my view from inside.

I approached that door and cautiously turned the knob not knowing what would be inside. And when my head peeked in my heart lit up.

There were seven rows of cushioned seat set in a stair-like pattern with the back row being higher up than the front row like the seating arrangement at a movie theatre but with one big step for each row of seats. Each chair had a foldable desk tops like the auditorium and in front of that was a stage. A beautiful but quite small stage. There was a piano set up next to wall that was for a level carpeted flooring from the back of the room to the stage on the right side and a brick wall making out the front of the stage with a small staircase on the left side that lead down the same low floors of the first row of seat and that piano. I hypnotically made my way to the right side and walked down the level flooring to the stage with stars most likely in my eyes. The stage had one row of lights set up in the very front with an open red curtain and backstage was very small but had enough space for people and props to hide in the wings of the stage. There were also six small, black curtains that I could see could not only move from side to side but could also rotate to give the stage many different dimensions and setups. I also took note of the small projector above the seats on the ceiling as well as one in the middle of the stage's ceiling and two projector screens with one at the back wall of the stage and one in front of the red curtain. In the very back on stage right however was a small closet filled with props of all kinds. I browsed through to see many different varieties of not only props but costumes. Things from Shakespeare time, the late 1960's, sci-fi gear, modern day, you name it! It was a bit small but the sheer amount of props and costumes were overwhelming!

I soon heard the door open as I exited the storage room and noticed Damian, Luca, and Willie all enter and look around. I cam out from behind one of the black curtains and they quickly noticed me as I approached them. Willie chuckled. "So this is one of your fancy theatres now, ain't it? I gotta say though this place is quite little compared to the auditorium."

I chuckle. "Well Willie this is a little theatre classroom after all. This is where the theatre teacher would teach their class. It's the best place for beginners to learn the basics of the theatre. You can even see the teacher's private office back by the door where they can do their grading." I pointed back hoping down from the stage and approaching the door. The other three went to the door too and peered inside the giant window next to the office door. I heard a collected gasp as I got closer.

Luca looked back at me. "Kai, you need to see this."

I couldn't possibly think anything was so important that I would need to see what's in there. If anything it should be empty. I got in between Luca and Damian and looked in and a gasp resonated from my vocal cords just as they had from the others.

Inside was a pretty dusty looking office inside. I saw office supplies and a laptop. I saw cupboards filled to the brim with paperwork, a theatre teacher's book on the courses for the many classes they teach high schoolers, and scripts of every classic and modern theatre plays you could think of as well as their movies. But what caught me and the others off guard was the fact we saw someone's personal belongings in there. All there was inside was we could see was a Bachelor's degree in theatre and a picture of a woman wearing a blue graduation gown smiling with brown eyes, long, brown hair, and porcelain white skin as she held the same college degree we saw hanging from the wall. Standing next to her was a man with short, black hair and hazel eyes, wearing a marines uniform and holding her sides. We also saw wedding rings on both of their hands. That was all we could see in there but we couldn't believe what we were seeing.

Damian was the first to speak. "I thought all the staff never got here. Didn't Monokuma say they were all fired? If that was the case then why is someone's belonging in there? Shouldn't the office had been cleared out of any personal items?"

"That would be the case wouldn't it. I have a bad feeling about this." Luca murmured.

Willie looked to the door and went to open it but found it wouldn't budge. "No good. Door's been locked up. Can't get in for a closer look."

Meanwhile while they were chatting my eyes stared at the woman as I looked up at the degree and read the name on it. "Casey Jay Bradshaw". That must be the lady in the photo. After all she is the one holding the same degree in the photo. So then the man is her husband or Mr. Bradshaw. I don't know what it was but something drew me to this photo. Maybe I've seen them somewhere before? Was that really it though? Could such a simple answer really be why they seem so familiar? Soon my gaze was averted by someone snapping in my ear. My head shook as my focus was now on Luca who looked at me worried. "Kai? What's wrong?"

"Oh nothing." I replied.

"Are... you sure? You blanked out for a moment there." Luca didn't seemed convinced.

But I smiled reassuringly at him. "Of course I am. You don't need to be such a worry wart."

Luca sighed before smiling. "I guess I do tend to worry too much. Alright I'll stop for now."

"But you are right about one thing. This Bradshaw is definitely a teacher and it looks like she was gonna be this academy's theatre teacher too. But there is one thing besides the fact there shouldn't be any staff here." I noted.

"Oh? What's that?" Damian asked.

"The office has dust in it. Isn't that weird? The entire school is clean as a whistle yet in there it is quite messy. You can even see a dust line barely underneath the laptop." I pointed out and sure enough it is hardly noticeable but with the light on it was crystal clear.

"Maybe Monokuma just doesn't care about cleanin' places we don't have access to. If we can't search the place then why bother cleanin' it?" Willie asked.

"I... suppose that could be it." I said thoughtfully but... was that right?

Willie slapped my back roughly sending me forward a bit before my body instinctually stiffened up to keep me from falling as I straightened back up, feeling the spot his hand connected slightly burn from the slap. "Partner, you're overthinkin' things again. You ain't got nothin' to worry about. I'm sure Monokuma set up this stuff to confuse us. I mean it is part of the lil' theatre after all so I wouldn't pull it past him to come up with something devious like that."

"Yeah I probably am. Sorry." I apologized.

"Ya got nothin' to be apologizin' for. By the way did ya see any hints to where the perk may be?" Willie questioned me.

Think back on it I did explore the entire room, including the storage room but not even with how much stuff was cluttered in there did it shows signs of any kind of perk. So I answered with a solemn shake of my head.

Damian seemed upset. "Aw frizz man. And this is the last room up here we've checked too."

"But that's impossible. Monokuma told us the perk was up here." I said.

"Actually his words were _somewhere new_. He never specifically said the new floor." Luca noted. I saw his words were for us all yet his eyes were glued to me.

"But we came up from the first and second floors and there ain't nothing new down there." Willie argued. "I betcha anythin' Monokuma lied to us... again."

I was curious about the way Luca emphasized the words something new. Could he have hinted at something? But what? If the perk isn't on this floor then it would be on a new floor and nothing is new down there... except...

"That's it..." I trailed off.

Willie looked at me looking at me in confusion. "Come again?"

"That's gotta be it!" I shouted as I made a mad dash out of the little theatre and past the others. Damian and Willie looked shocked as they called out to me and chased after me when I ignored them and kept running. Luca followed them too.

I rushed past everyone and when they saw me rush past them they would follow too, wondering why I was in such a rush until all the surviving students were behind me. I raced down the staircase to the second floor and across it to the next staircase. I took them down to the first floor and jumped off, skipping the last few steps and landing on the ground. I felt my leg buckle a bit but got up and rushed into the open room directly ahead.

I desperately looked around the school store to see it had changed. I remember seeing the leather straps before when Brenda used it for her murder but in their place were matches. It was just as I suspected. The school store's inventory was updated. Or in other words _new_.

I immediately began frantically searching through as the other students piled in at the entrance and stared at me in bewilderment.

Shana approached me. "Kai! What's gotten into you!" She shouted but I ignored her as I froze. She didn't like that as she turned my body towards her clutching the collar of my vest. "Listen you little..." But she saw my head didn't turn to look at her and wanting to know what caught my attention her eyes followed mine to the vending machine and she gasped as her hands slowly lost their grasp on me.

I slowly approached the vending machine and saw without a doubt in my mind one slot of the vending machine having only one thing. A small envelope that bulged with the content of the perk inside. I looked at the row it was in and imputed the numbers 1-1-0-3-7. I found it unusual that that one row had such an unusual number compared to the others and no beginning letter but didn't question it as the vending machine rotated it and pushed the envelope out as it feel with a hard thud to the compartment. I slowly reached down and opened the hatch and grabbed onto it. I pulled it out and blankly stared at it before flipping it onto it's back to see it was sealing with a Monokuma stamp and a small message written. It read, "The Perk has been found!".

Shana stared in amazement. "You found it. Kai found the hidden perk."

Everyone heard this and began rushing in despite there being not enough room. I heard them all shouting different things at me. They demanded that I open it and show them what was inside while I heard other demand that I had it to them but before I could respond Monokuma popped up. "Alright! That's enough! Everyone out! You're gonna break something in here and I don't wanna replace it! OUT NOW!"

Everyone quickly scattered out as Monokuma then hopped out behind us. "Alrighty kids! The search for my hidden perk is done! The one who found it first is the one who gets to use it and only them! If I find someone else has used the perk then anyone affiliated with that person getting the perk will result in punishment! No exceptions!"

I looked at him in shock as I sadly held the perk in my hand, now knowing my plan to share it was ruined.

"Anyways now that's all done. I'll see you all at the next class trial! See ya soon kiddos! Puhuhuhuhuhu!" With that Monokuma bounded away gleefully. Everyone began staring at me again like they did before at the curtain. I saw hateful glares and eyes full of suspicion and others who looked fearful or just envious. I guess they're still cautious of me because they think I'm in league with Monokuma or they're just jealous of me finding the perk first. It seemed like no one wanted to stick around as everyone began dispersing.

I saw everyone had left by this point except Luca and I knew why. He smiled as he patted my shoulder. "Congrats on figuring out where the perk was hidden, Kai."

I was silent for a moment before I spoke up. "Don't pretend like it was me who figured it out. You knew. You knew it was probably in the school store. You hinted it to me when we were in the little theatre. Why didn't you go and get it when you had the chance. You figured it out before me obviously so why?"

Luca shrugged as his smile didn't drop at all. "I figured it would be best in your hands. I think you're the most responsible person here and if it fell to anyone's hands it could lead to disaster. Even with me."

I had no words to say as I looked down. 'He gave up the perk because he thinks I'm the most responsible one? I can't believe he'd sacrifice his chance at a perk in this killing game but he did.'

I looked back up to see he was gone. I looked down the hallway to see Luca walking away as he turned down another hallway. I sighed as I looked at the perk in my hand. I figured I should use it now and see what this perk is. I should also do it somewhere secure and private just make sure no one watches me. I don't want to risk them getting executed for breaking the rules of the perk. I went to the only place I knew I could look at it. My room.

I quickly made my way to the dormitory hall and unlocked the door of my room before hopping in and locking it. I ran and sat on the edge on my bed as I held the perk in my hand, wondering what could possibly be in here.

With a slightly shaky hand, I grabbed the seal on the back and tore it in half. Seeing me rip Monokuma's face like that made me wish it was the real Monokuma I could do that to but I shook that out of my mind as I opened the envelope and gasped. I quickly emptied the envelope out as a cell phone landed in my hand as well as a slip of paper.

I sent the envelope down and open the folded paper. It was instructions and a letter. I began reading.

"To whom it may concern,

You are the sole winner of finding the hidden perk! There are some rules you must follow when using this perk.

1\. Only you are allowed to use it. Anyone else caught with it will be punished.

2\. You may use it only once. You can save the perk for a later use if you wish.

3\. They way it works is depending on the person who finds it, you'll receive a special number to use. It will be imputed in when the perk owner is known my the headmaster.

4\. After it is used you may keep the perk if you wish but remember it can't be used again so what's the point?

Enjoy~"

After reading it I looked at the phone and contemplated if I should use it now or save it later. I wanted to use it now! Maybe I can contact someone in the outside world but maybe not. It would defeat the purpose of the killing game and us being blocked off from the outside. Maybe Monokuma wants me to waste it now when it might be best to use it later. I was stuck with no idea what I should do.

 **What should I do?**

 **Use the perk**

 **or**

 **Save the perk?**

* * *

 _Hey guys. I know it's been a few months since my last chapter but I've gone through so many changes that I just couldn't keep up with writing. A new job, trying to find a new place to live, and becoming an official part of a community had me so busy I had no chance to write until now. Anyways I'm sorry again and I hope this chapter wasn't a waste. It will continue once you all vote on the outcome! Will Kai use the perk or not? The poll is up on my account and if you want the next chapter I better see a decent amount of votes! Well I hope you did enjoy it and I hope to see you again soon! Until then see ya soon! Puhuhuhu~_


	19. Chapter 3 Part 3: Day 10 Part 3

I had decided that I needed to use the perk. If it was a chance to escape then I had to take it now before anyone else was killed. I opened the flip phone and dialed the only number on it. It began ringing.

I heard the dial tone with each ring. I trembled as it continued with no answer, scared of who might answer... or who might not answer. But then it stopped and I heard it. _"... M-m-moshi moshi?"_

My heart leapt at the voice. I knew it too well. "M-Manako? Is that you?"

 _"... K-Kai?"_ Manako stammered _, "... Oh my God, Kai... Thank God you're alive..."_

"Manako! God Manako! I can't believe it! It's been hell in here! Five of my schoolmates are dead and this demon bear is still forcing us to play this sick killing game. But you already know that since it's being broadcasted." I said trembling more as I spoke to my childhood friend.

 _"It's been hell here, too..."_ she said with a whimper. I could tell she was crying by the sound of her voice. _"Mariko got executed for attacking Monokuma right at the start, and Sam got murdered by Daniel..."_ She trailed off after saying that before she continued. _"... Kai... I... I know about Sienna..."_

My head dropped down. "So my suspicion was right. You're in a killing game too. Why is this happening to us?" Then I looked up realizing the last thing she said. "Wait... Sienna? What about her?"

 _"... Someone put files on my computer..."_ she told me, _"... The files contained videos of Daniel and Sienna together... And the night of my first trial... I saw..._ _I saw a girl murder Sienna..."_

I looked down. "That was Brenda, the Ultimate Collector. I'm... I'm sorry about Mariko, Sam, and Daniel. I lost five good friends here. Also why are you getting videos of Daniel and Sienna?"

 _"I don't know..."_ Manako sighed, _"I don't know what's going on anymore, honestly... one of my classmates, Alice, was telling me about how all the rooms have a gap between the dresser and the bedroom wall... Apparently it's easy to hide things there... That's where Alice found the murder weapon before the investigation of the last trial."_

"What the hell is going on? Why are we in these killing games?" I figured it was pointless to ask but felt like he needed to anyway.

 _"I don't know..."_ Manako sighed.

I then heard a voice in the background. Must've been someone else in the room with Manako but then I thought of something and quickly spoke up.

"Manako, please tell me you know where Terry is right now. Monokuma has done something to him." I said distressed.

 _"I don't know..."_ Manako said, sounding down, _"I can't even contact my parents..."_

 _"If my theory is correct..."_ A new and very accurate Australian voice suddenly popped in, indicating the speaker phone must gave been turned on. _"... It might not be so simple..."_

"What do you mean?" I asked. "Also who is this?"

 _"Alice Spencer, Super High School Level Pilot."_ Alice introduced, _"And as for why it's not simple, let me explain..."_

I heard rapid keyboard typing on their end. She must have a laptop on hand. I would've asked if we could use it to find help but if Manako and Paul both can't access the outside world then I doubt Alice could.

 _"I've been doing research up until the killing games, I have..."_ she began, _"Apparently since the beginning of this year, there's been increased activity from anti-government militias and Alternative-Political influence groups in America. Surprisingly, this has been going on long before the current election, but it's possible the election was the catalyst. However, despite this, there's been talk among the internet of something simply called 'Despair'."_

I blinked in shock upon hearing that all too familiar word as I stood up and began pacing, taking in what Alice told me and Manako next.

 _"Right at the beginning of this year, members of an Anti-Government Militia based in a town in Colorado took an entire government office hostage, demanding that Federal Agents release one of their members that they claimed got arrested in a sting earlier that week. But here's the kicker; The member they were demanding doesn't exist. It was merely a ploy to buy them more time. When Federal Marshals moved in and apprehended them, it was revealed that the militia had killed all the hostages already. Needless to say, the Marshals gunned all of the militia men down, save for one, who they apprehended. When they questioned him, he said he was instructed to do this, and that 'Despair' is coming."_

"It sounds like he was working for Monokuma and the masterminds behind our killing games." I theorized.

 _"It seems that the masterminds behind all this are trying to marshal all the Anti-government, Fascist, and Anarchist groups in the world against the powers that be..."_ Alice continued, _"there's been stories of violent incidents all around the world lately... Far more than there ever have been... And not only that..."_

Suddenly I heard Manako, who had been quietly soaking in this news as much as I had, gasp in shock. That did not help ease my already tense and overwhelmed mind.

 _"... Apparently the Hope's Peak Los Angeles class went missing..."_ Alice said.

If they could see my face right now then they'd see the utter disbelief. "Missing? What do you mean the class and staff went missing? Sure the staff seem to have vanished from here but we've been here since the first day Hope's Peak Academy opened to the public and televised since the killing game started."

 _"That's the weird part..."_ Alice said, _"Only the students went missing... The staff... well... One of them was found in his apartment, hanging from the ceiling with a belt... His computer was on, and there was a instant message left open that mentioned 'giving the order' or something... It's possible it was an inside job..."_

 _"So, what about the Japanese Campus?"_ I heard Manako ask, _"Has anything come up about them?"_

 _"Nothing..."_ Alice replied, _"Classes have been going on regularly there..."_

"But that makes no sense at all. How could we have gone missing? There's just no possible way. Trapped with no way out yes, but missing is impossible. When was the article dated?" I asked bewildered beyond reason.

Things then got eerily quiet as she looked for the date before I heard a beeping most likely from the laptop and the all too recognizable laugh of the damned Monokuma.

 _"... Uh oh..."_ Alice said as I heard desperate clicking and no one telling me what was happening.

"Guys? What happened?" I asked worried as my pacing grew faster when they didn't respond.

Then a shout rang into my ear, hurting my eardrum. _"Shit!"_ Alice cursed, _"Bloody blighters got me computer..."_

Suddenly the phone had Monokuma's voice call out. _"You're time is up! You have 10 seconds remaining!"_

I felt my heart rate increase in despair and anger. "What? No! You didn't say anything about a time limit! Manako!" I cried out as tears formed in my eyes, clouding my vision.

 _"Kai!"_ Manako exclaimed, _"Listen, the night I arrived in Las Vegas, I heard a voice! It said that finding 'him' is the key to saving everyone! I... I don't know..."_ Her sentence was cut short when I heard some static interference but it quickly went away. _"I'll find a way out of here... I'll find you... I... I promise!"_

That's when the phone quickly shut off. No hang up, no dial tone, not even a light. It just died. I stood there frozen in place and time as my heart also had ceased all movement and sound. At least to me that's what it felt like. Soon my legs gave way as I collapsed to the floor on my knees and my arms hung lumpy down my sides, the phone bouncing out of my hand.

My brain was trying to process what happened just now. I was able to speak with my only close friend in my life before coming here to find out she was also trapped in a killing game, some government marshals apprehended some terrorist associated with Monokuma and the mastermind, and that my class went missing? I tried in every way I could think to try and make heads or tails of all this but all it did was mash against each other harshly and give me a major migraine.

Feeling my head throbbing I stood up and stumbled slowly over to the door. I tried to fully grasp all the information that was suddenly thrust on me but all that was happening was more questions popping in and more confusion.

I clumsily tried to grab my lock before I soon unlocked the door and opened it. I stepped out and closed the door, not even bothering to lock it as I walked out of the dormitory hallway. Soon I heard another door in the hall open and close and footsteps running up to me.

"Hey Kai!" I heard Luca call out to me as he caught up to me. I saw him with my peripherals but made no move to look at him. I was too out of it to fully acknowledge him as I'm sure he saw my red eyes and a thousand-yard stare on my face.

He looked concern at that moment. "Buddy? What happened? Did you use the perk?"

I silently nodded as he continued asking me more questions. "So what happened? Was it a way out? A way to call help? Are you getting out alone or will we all get out together?"

I don't know what came over me but at that moment Luca's questions began overwhelming my already overwhelmed mind and the next thing I knew was me turning so suddenly at Luca and my voice very loud as I began shouting. "Dude just lay off! I got enough on my mind right now! I don't have time for your ridiculous questions!"

When my frustration was done belting out I registered the shock and hurt on him and I backed away instantly feeling regret. "Oh, Luca… I'm… I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to explode at you like that."

Before I could apologize more Luca raised his hands up. "No no. It's fine. I should have realized you had something big on your mind. How… rude of me."

I knew by his tone he was clearly hurt and now I felt even more terrible. He was just concerned and curious about me and the outcome if the perk and I made him feel like he was getting on my nerves.

"I had no right to get angry at you," I said with my head hung low.

"Well, you won't have to worry about me getting you angry," Luca replied as he began walking away, his hands now tucked into his jacket pockets, "Because I'll be sure to not get in your way for a while. I'll let everyone else know to be careful approaching you too."

He made it sound like a favor but I took it as a way for a bad rumor to begin spreading since that's exactly what would happen. But the sad part was how true that bad rumor is. The new information Manako gave me plus the now overwhelming urge of guilt and sorrow I felt made me just collapse onto my hands and knees as I began to silently weep.

Suddenly I heard a door quickly shut back in the dormitory hallway and my head jerked back to look behind me. But I saw nothing and no one in the hallway. Obviously, no one walked past me and Luca to get to the dorms so they must have been coming out of their room and saw everything that happened before retreating back in their dorm to avoid being caught. I was wondering who saw us but I decided it doesn't matter right now. I needed to get my mind off everything and fast. I was in a very high emotional state and I couldn't let anyone else see me like this.

I quickly wiped at my lightly wet eyes and quickly stood up before I continued walking out into the school commons area. I kept walking until I noticed someone inside the library through the entrance doors.

I entered in, curious as to who it was since I couldn't make out any features from how far they were seated. But upon walking closer I was stunned to see it was Marcel of all people, nose deep into an encyclopedia. "What the heck is he doing?" I wondered.

I soon approached him but he seems to be too focused to notice me standing next to him. I looked down at his fast scrolling eyes and whisper to him, "Marcel?"

He gasps in surprise as he jumped up which in turn made me jump up and let out my own surprised yelp. After a second of silence, we both let out an exasperated sigh before we both began lightly chuckling.

"Hey Kai my main man! You gotta give more warning to a dude before you sneak up on him like that." Marcel laughed as I rubbed the back of my head.

I blushed, embarrassed. "Yeah. I should've called out when I came in. Sorry about that. I was just surprised to see you in here of all places, reading an encyclopedia of all things. That doesn't seem like you."

Marcel sighed out in frustration. "Yeah well I'm trying to at least but for whatever reason, this book is impossible to read. I think it's written in Mexican or Britain or some other language that isn't American."

I wasn't gonna bother to explain how he just mistook those nationalities for languages, I just wanted to see what he was talking about. I peered over his shoulder to look at the encyclopedia only to immediately recognize he was holding the big mahogany book upside down. I didn't even tell him that I just showed him by grabbing the book and flipping it right side up.

Marcel immediately blushed and cleared his throat awkwardly. "Um… th-thanks. I'm still trying to not be a total mess up."

"Hey don't worry about it, man. Everyone has off days. Even I do." I smiled at him.

Marcel shrugged. "I guess so. I'm just surprised you're even out and about right now."

I looked at him confused. "Really? How come?"

"Well," Marcel seemed hesitant but replied, "It's because Luca was going around and telling everyone he ran into you and that you shouldn't be bothered right now. Also, he seemed really sad and I wasn't able to find out why."

I felt my body seize up again as I knew exactly why as the shame of our encounter hit my gut like a brick wall. But I quickly shook it off to ensure he didn't see my reaction to his statement. "I don't know." Was all I replied with as I took a seat to his right at his table.

Marcel seemed convinced I didn't know so he just nodded slightly as he went back to the encyclopedia. I looked at him still curious about why he was even attempting to read such a large and informative book.

"So you never gave me a proper answer before for why you're reading that book," I said to Marcel before he looked back. He then nodded as he then closed the book and placed it down before he propped his elbows on top of it.

"Listen… if I tell you, ya gotta promise me not to tell the others. Not yet at least. Can ya do that for me? Bro to bro?" Marcel asked me looking very serious which was another surprise to add to the list for today's surprises. But I nodded regardless.

With that confirmation from me, Marcel looked down at his hands that rubbed together nervously as he began. "I wasn't always a complete idiot. Actually, I did pretty well in school. I had loved surfing ever since I first saw that surfing penguin movie."

I thought for a moment before the movie's title popped into my head. "Surf's Up yeah?"

Marcel smiled at me. "That's the one. No surprise the Ultimate Actor knew exactly the movie I was talking about. Well anyway ever since I saw that movie I became a surfing addict of sorts but I never let it interfere with my homework or grades. That is… until the incident."

I adjusted myself as I sat up more in my chair as my curiosity also perked up. "What incident?" Marcel looked up sadly as he seemed to recall the memory in his mind as he continued telling it to me. "Well my parents were happy to have me as a son but they had another joy in life. You see my parents were dog showers to a champion red toy poodle that they raised his entire life. Boomer was their pride and they won multiple championships with him and he was the go-to breeding champ who always produced the perfect litter of champion puppies."

"Sounds awesome. I wish I could have a dog but Terry wouldn't let me after I smuggled in a stray dog that was majorly covered in lice, scabs, and ticks all over it." I quickly recalled laughing at my past.

Marcel chuckled too. "Tubular man. Yeah, a dog really is cool but put him in my care at the time and that leads to a world of regret."

"What happened?" I asked worried how this story would turn out.

"Well one day my parents were out of town on a business trip and I was home alone with Boomer. My parents told me not to leave the house and to keep an eye on him to ensure he was being taken care of. However, I really wanted to, despite the fact I had a radical relationship with the little dude already but I knew there was going to be a great set of waves that day. I have a fifth sense when it comes to the waves."

I blinked. "It's a sixth sense actually." I corrected him.

He shrugged as he continued. "Well, I just knew there was gonna be like major smoking waves out at my usual surf turf so I grabbed my board and ran out. But not before I made sure Boomer had enough food and water and his favorite toy before I left. But I was in such a rush to get surfing I didn't notice the front gate didn't close all the way."

I looked down sadly. "Did he get out and run over by a car?"

Marcel lightly scoffed. "I wish. That would've been way better for him."

If my interest wasn't peaked before it definitely was now. "But yeah he got out when the gate popped back open but he followed me all the way to the beach. I was so focused on the waves I saw that I didn't notice him a ways behind me. I hopped into my board and began paddling myself out into the ocean. But Boomer was a persistent little dude and really wanted to be with me so he dropped his toy in the sand and hopped right in the water and began to try to swim out to me."

"When I got up to surf what would have been my first gnarly wave of the day that's when I noticed my little buddy was desperately trying to reach me but was having trouble with swimming through the waves. That when it happened. All of a sudden I heard the other people screaming in terror as everyone was making a beeline out of the water to the shore and soon I saw why. I saw the fin of a shark gliding across the water and headed straight for my little dude. I immediately used the wave to get me back to the shore as fast as possible but even with my surfing speed the shark was just faster and it grabbed Boomer just before I could. I saw my little buddy get practically eaten in one bite." Marcel began lightly trembling as he paused for a moment to compose himself.

My hand was already covering my agape mouth as I felt tears prick at my eyes. "Oh my God. I'm so sorry to hear that. That's such a terrible thing to witness."

"I was 10. I was so traumatized to see him die such a brutal death but I never blamed the shark, I blamed myself. If I had just made sure the gate closed behind me he wouldn't have gotten out and followed me out to where the hungry shark was. But I didn't and I had to deal with the consequences the minute I told my parents the truth. My father struck me multiple times and both parents scolded me. I already had to deal with some bullying in school but now I was getting it constantly at home because of my mistake."

I shook my head at that. "That's so not right. I understand that Boomer had a lot of money and time put into him and his championships but you were 10. Kids tend to overlook things easy no matter how careful they are. You shouldn't have been blamed so harshly like that."

"Yeah but he was my family's main source of income with his puppies and since we some all the puppies we couldn't raise another champion up to replace him and my parents resented the idea if replacing him with anything other than one of his puppies but everyone refused to sell us back a puppy that was young enough and so my parents were forced to get everyday jobs with time clocks and bosses and they resented those jobs and me for putting them in that predicament. And the blame I felt for what happened caused me to not care about anything but surfing and soon my grades began dropping and dropping until the point in high school where I nearly dropped out entirely before I got the invite to join Hope's Peak Academy. My parents told me how much of a dumbass I was after the incident so I guess I soon became the stereotypical dumbass surfer dude they thought I was," Marcel explained.

Again my head shook in disappointment upon hearing this unfair treatment he was getting from his parents. "I'm so sorry to hear that. I hope they still aren't in your case nowadays for what happened."

Once again Marcel looked down. "Well, actually they haven't. They died about a year after the incident."

I again had to cover my mouth as a gasp resonated from between my clasped fingers. "No."

Marcel nodded. "Yeah. Unfortunately, they were driving to work one day and suddenly their car wasn't slowing down. Turned out the brakes had been sabotaged and they crashed into a telephone pole. They died immediately upon impact. Police believed it was done by a gang of juveniles looking to cause some mayhem and trouble. Been an orphan ever since."

"Oh, Marcel. I'm… so sorry man." I whispered sadly.

Marcel then gave me the most reassuring smile I had ever seen. "It's fine buddy. I've come to terms with their deaths. With all of their deaths. It is sad to think about but I'm made stronger from it. And I like to think I'm being made stronger with the deaths of our friends here. After all, when someone I care about dies I would want to keep living on for them. You know what I mean right?"

He did have a point. After all, I'm literally carrying a piece of everyone who has died with me so that their memories can live on. So I guess in a way I'm helping them live on with me continuing to live for them. "Yeah, Marcel I get what you mean."

Marcel smiled at me. "Well, that's why I was trying to read the book. I wanna try to be smarter than I am now and I need to work hard now so I cannot be a waste of everyone's time."

"Marcel, you will never be a waste of time. Listen I want to apologize for the way I treated you. I feel like I've not been fair to you and I feel bad for not getting to know you sooner." I asked him for forgiveness which took him by surprise.

"Well… thanks, bro. I didn't realize you felt that way but I'm glad you wanna make it up to me. Also, it's not your fault we couldn't talk. After all, the king of dickbags is too busy ruling the dictators club with his right-hand bitch at his beck and call." Marcel whispered to me with a sly grin.

We both erupted in laughter and soon settled down before talking some more. I learned more about his surfer buddies, the different moves he could pull off and what they were called, and the foster families that have tried to take him in.

I got so lost in my conversation with Marcel that I didn't realize how much time passed until I saw the clock on the wall. It was now 7 pm and we had been talking for over 6 hours straight! Marcel and I soon got up and headed for the cafeteria to get dinner not only with a newfound bond of friendship but a mutual understanding of each other. Now when I look at him I don't think of him as the dumb idiot who knows nothing but the misunderstood boy with a tragic past who needs to be treated with the respect he deserves.

* * *

 _So sorry for how late this chapter came out. Life has been a real mindfuck and not to mention when I tried working on this chapter twice I lost all the work I put into it! So I lost a lot of motivation to rewrite everything over again. Hopefully I can back into writing on a more timely manner. Well I hope you enjoyed the chapter and Marcel's free time event! Until next time though I'll see you later! Puhuhuhuhu~_


End file.
